Mountain Empire Community College (MECC) vs Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC)

Mountain Empire Community College (MECC) and Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) stand as two distinct institutions of higher learning, each catering to unique student populations and academic aspirations. MECC, nestled in the heart of Big Stone Gap, Virginia, offers a close-knit community with a focus on personalized attention and affordability. In contrast, NOVA, with its sprawling campuses across the Northern Virginia region, boasts a diverse student body and a wide array of academic programs. While both colleges share a commitment to providing quality education, their acceptance rates, popular majors, student demographics, and graduation rates paint a picture of two distinct educational experiences. Delve into the comparison table below to discover which college aligns best with your academic goals and personal preferences.

	Mountain Empire Community College	Northern Virginia Community College
Overview
Location	Big Stone Gap, Virginia	Annandale, Virginia
Campus setting	Town: Distant	Suburb: Large
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	68.0%	69.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	Open Admission	Open Admission
Application fees
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants
Total number of admissions given out
Admitted students who chose to enroll
Yield rate
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	Not required	Not required
High school GPA	N/A	N/A
Recommendation letters	N/A	N/A
High school transcript	N/A	N/A
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	N/A	N/A

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $14,385 Out of state: $20,388	In state: $23,961 Out of state: $30,044
Average net price	$8,803	$9,627
Tuition	In state: $4,620 Out of state: $9,918	In state: $5,412 Out of state: $10,790
Room & board
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	98.0% Average amount $5,590	53.0% Average amount $6,083
Students receiving federal student loan	0.0% Average amount $0	18.0% Average amount $4,754
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $3,006	0.0% Average amount $7,370

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,079 Men 37.3% Women 62.7%	49,560 Men 46.7% Women 53.3%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	1.0%	1.5%
International students	0.1%	2.5%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	N/A	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Virginia Tennessee	Virginia Maryland District of Columbia West Virginia North Carolina

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Liberal Arts Engineering Technologies Law Enforcement and Firefighting Construction Trades	Liberal Arts Business Computer and Information Science Social Sciences Health Professions
Students to faculty ratio	19:1	28:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	44.1%	32.9%
Dropout rate	45.6%	36.7%
Transferred out	3.7%	15.4%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $49,999 Year 2: $50,161 Year 3: $52,521 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $39,541 Year 2: $36,166 Year 3: $41,849 Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,771 Year 3: $30,684 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $15,964 Year 3: $21,826 Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $18,788 Year 2: $19,508 Year 3: $21,200 Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $31,719 Year 2: $35,600 Year 3: N/A Criminal Justice and Corrections (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $30,449 Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: N/A Business Operations Support and Assistant Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $24,047 Year 2: $20,824 Year 3: N/A	Dental Support Services and Allied Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $74,638 Year 2: $69,757 Year 3: $77,964 Computer Science (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $39,274 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $69,522 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $58,587 Year 2: $57,657 Year 3: $62,620 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $61,136 Year 2: $60,903 Year 3: $61,377 Accounting and Related Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $53,059 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $33,646 Year 2: $33,382 Year 3: $50,541 Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR) (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $61,129 Year 2: $38,829 Year 3: $48,517 Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $41,037 Year 2: $54,778 Year 3: $45,252 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $29,169 Year 2: $29,350 Year 3: $42,383 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $34,656 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: $41,957

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Mountain Empire Community College (MECC) vs Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC)

Mountain Empire Community College

Northern Virginia Community College

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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