Michigan State University (MSU) vs University of Virginia-Main Campus (UVA)

Michigan State University and University of Virginia-Main Campus, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Michigan State, located in East Lansing, Michigan, boasts a larger student body and a higher acceptance rate compared to UVA, situated in Charlottesville, Virginia. While UVA's student body is more diverse, MSU offers a wider range of undergraduate programs, including popular majors like Engineering, Business, and Communication. Both universities excel in research and offer a vibrant campus life, but UVA has a slightly higher graduation rate. 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.

	Michigan State University	University of Virginia-Main Campus
Overview
Location	East Lansing, Michigan	Charlottesville, Virginia
Campus setting	City: Small	Suburb: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	92.0%	97.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	83.3%	20.7%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $65 Graduate: $65	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $85
SAT range	1100 - 1320	1380 - 1500
ACT range	23 - 29	32 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	48.0%	52.0%
Students submitting ACT score	16.0%	21.0%
Total number of applicants	50,630	47,971
Total number of admissions given out	42,150	9,951
Admitted students who chose to enroll	9,225	3,889
Yield rate	21.9%	39.1%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,734 Out of state: $55,546	In state: $36,314 Out of state: $70,696
Average net price	$8,738	$20,401
Tuition	In state: $14,750 Out of state: $40,562	In state: $16,010 Out of state: $49,710
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,408 Meal plan: $6,268	Room/dormitory: $7,110 Meal plan: $5,550
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	58.0% Average amount $12,822	46.0% Average amount $19,612
Students receiving federal student loan	34.0% Average amount $4,999	25.0% Average amount $4,845
Students taking out private loans	6.0% Average amount $18,093	6.0% Average amount $11,030

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	38,574 Men 48.4% Women 51.6%	17,294 Men 43.7% Women 56.3%
Graduate students	11,085 Men 42.4% Women 57.6%	8,711 Men 46.9% Women 53.1%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	18.7%	35.2%
International students	8.3%	8.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Suburb: Small
Dormitory capacity	17,463	7,645
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Michigan Illinois California Ohio New York	Virginia New York Maryland Pennsylvania New Jersey

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Communication and Journalism Health Professions Engineering	Business Health Professions Engineering Social Sciences Education
Students to faculty ratio	16:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	82.1%	93.7%
Dropout rate	7.8%	2.3%
Transferred out	9.8%	3.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $126,500 Year 2: $123,886 Year 3: $132,790 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,863 Year 2: $98,481 Year 3: $108,546 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,313 Year 2: $89,435 Year 3: $101,511 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $92,361 Year 2: $96,183 Year 3: $100,492 Educational Administration and Supervision (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $97,714 Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $79,294 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $93,263 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $84,609 Year 2: $83,915 Year 3: $92,316 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $83,457 Year 2: $86,129 Year 3: $91,721 Food Science and Technology (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $81,178 Year 2: $83,915 Year 3: $89,761 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,462 Year 2: $80,133 Year 3: $84,869	Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $185,710 Year 2: $162,255 Year 3: $193,013 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $157,071 Year 2: $155,263 Year 3: $176,237 Computer Software and Media Applications (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $86,350 Year 2: $101,406 Year 3: $125,729 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $103,426 Year 2: $107,256 Year 3: $120,362 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $108,239 Year 2: $95,739 Year 3: $109,956 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,639 Year 2: $92,077 Year 3: $108,272 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $84,682 Year 2: $90,146 Year 3: $101,904 Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,602 Year 2: $82,440 Year 3: $95,939 Systems Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,487 Year 2: $82,808 Year 3: $94,931 Public Policy Analysis (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,807 Year 2: $70,596 Year 3: $84,597

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