Michigan State University (MSU) vs Virginia Tech

Michigan State University (MSU) and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) are two highly regarded public research universities with distinct characteristics. MSU, located in East Lansing, Michigan, boasts a larger student body and a higher acceptance rate compared to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. Both universities offer a diverse range of academic programs, with popular majors in engineering, business, and agriculture. While MSU has a slightly higher graduation rate, Virginia Tech excels in research expenditures and has a stronger endowment. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more differences between these two esteemed institutions and make an informed decision about which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Michigan State University	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Overview
Location	East Lansing, Michigan	Blacksburg, Virginia
Campus setting	City: Small	City: 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%	92.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	83.3%	56.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $65 Graduate: $65	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75
SAT range	1100 - 1320	1210 - 1410
ACT range	23 - 29	26 - 32
Students submitting SAT score	48.0%	83.0%
Students submitting ACT score	16.0%	35.0%
Total number of applicants	50,630	42,054
Total number of admissions given out	42,150	23,746
Admitted students who chose to enroll	9,225	6,758
Yield rate	21.9%	28.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,734 Out of state: $55,546	In state: $30,104 Out of state: $49,787
Average net price	$8,738	$20,109
Tuition	In state: $14,750 Out of state: $40,562	In state: $11,750 Out of state: $30,829
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,408 Meal plan: $6,268	Room/dormitory: $5,890 Meal plan: $4,736
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	58.0% Average amount $12,822	58.0% Average amount $8,018
Students receiving federal student loan	34.0% Average amount $4,999	40.0% Average amount $5,316
Students taking out private loans	6.0% Average amount $18,093	9.0% Average amount $20,728

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	38,574 Men 48.4% Women 51.6%	29,760 Men 57.3% Women 42.7%
Graduate students	11,085 Men 42.4% Women 57.6%	7,519 Men 56.5% Women 43.5%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	18.7%	39.5%
International students	8.3%	9.9%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	17,463	9,471
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 Maryland New Jersey North Carolina Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Communication and Journalism Health Professions Engineering	Engineering Business Family and Consumer Sciences Computer and Information Science Natural Resources and Conservation
Students to faculty ratio	16:1	14:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	82.1%	86.6%
Dropout rate	7.8%	12.3%
Transferred out	9.8%	N/A
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	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $105,287 Year 2: $113,246 Year 3: $125,427 Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,383 Year 2: $96,691 Year 3: $106,931 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $82,448 Year 2: $88,678 Year 3: $96,747 Veterinary Medicine (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $76,172 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $93,580 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,104 Year 2: $78,488 Year 3: $90,164 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,370 Year 2: $75,518 Year 3: $87,658 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $81,573 Year 2: $91,211 Year 3: $84,990 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,460 Year 2: $73,635 Year 3: $83,712 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,805 Year 2: $73,272 Year 3: $82,738 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,610 Year 2: $70,680 Year 3: $81,822

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Michigan State University (MSU) vs Virginia Tech

Michigan State University

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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