Messiah University vs Southeastern University

Messiah University and Southeastern University, both esteemed Christian institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Messiah, located in Grantham, Pennsylvania, boasts a higher acceptance rate (78%) compared to Southeastern's 68% in Lakeland, Florida. Messiah's student body is more diverse, with 38% of students identifying as non-white, while Southeastern's student body is predominantly white (79%). Both universities offer a range of popular majors, including nursing, business, and education, but Messiah has a higher graduation rate (73%) than Southeastern (68%). Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more key differences and make an informed decision about which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Messiah University	Southeastern University
Overview
Location	Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania	Lakeland, Florida
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	85.0%	70.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Interdenominational	Protestant

Admission
Acceptance rate	77.4%	44.9%
Application fees	$50	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $50
SAT range	1100 - 1340	960 - 1183
ACT range	23 - 31	19 - 25
Students submitting SAT score	57.0%	4.0%
Students submitting ACT score	11.0%	24.0%
Total number of applicants	2,458	4,940
Total number of admissions given out	1,902	2,219
Admitted students who chose to enroll	551	1,205
Yield rate	29.0%	54.3%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$54,340	$43,134
Average net price	$23,895	$27,536
Tuition	$37,430	$27,320
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,970 Meal plan: $5,250	Room/dormitory: $5,420 Meal plan: $5,394
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $26,620	95.0% Average amount $13,633
Students receiving federal student loan	65.0% Average amount $5,510	63.0% Average amount $5,442
Students taking out private loans	24.0% Average amount $11,228	5.0% Average amount $12,989

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,495 Men 39.0% Women 61.0%	8,118 Men 41.9% Women 58.1%
Graduate students	781 Men 28.6% Women 71.4%	1,247 Men 37.9% Women 62.1%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	34.6%	52.5%
International students	2.8%	2.2%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,403	1,699
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Pennsylvania Maryland New Jersey New York Delaware	Florida Ohio Alabama California Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Business Visual & Performing Arts Engineering	Theology Education Business Public Administration and Social Service Communication and Journalism
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	26:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	77.0%	51.4%
Dropout rate	4.8%	36.3%
Transferred out	18.3%	11.3%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,515 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $64,027 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,062 Year 2: $53,608 Year 3: $62,810 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,117 Year 2: $62,546 Year 3: $62,631 Music (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,416 Year 2: $55,693 Year 3: $56,809 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,254 Year 2: $49,214 Year 3: $53,924 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $32,970 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: $47,853 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,875 Year 2: $37,054 Year 3: $47,113 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,733 Year 2: $40,621 Year 3: $45,156 Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $43,616 Year 2: $39,523 Year 3: $44,488 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,316 Year 2: $35,594 Year 3: $41,855	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,821 Year 2: $45,696 Year 3: $43,751 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,660 Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: $37,065 Theology and Religious Vocations, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $29,900 Year 2: $36,490 Year 3: $36,937 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,742 Year 2: $30,119 Year 3: $33,900 Theology and Religious Vocations, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,245 Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: $32,188 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,456 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $40,485 Year 3: N/A Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,715 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Human Services, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $40,386 Year 2: $39,009 Year 3: N/A Human Services, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: N/A

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Messiah University vs Southeastern University

Messiah University

Southeastern University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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