National University (NU) vs The Pennsylvania State University (PSU)

National University and The Pennsylvania State University, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. National University, a private, nonprofit university in San Diego, California, boasts a diverse student body and a focus on online and evening programs, catering to working adults and those seeking flexible learning options. In contrast, The Pennsylvania State University, a public, land-grant research university in University Park, Pennsylvania, offers a more traditional campus experience with a large and vibrant student body. While both universities offer a wide range of academic programs, National University is known for its strength in business and management, while Penn State excels in engineering, agriculture, and the liberal arts. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more about the acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, graduation rates, and other key differences between these two exceptional universities to determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	National University	The Pennsylvania State University
Overview
Location	La Jolla, California	University Park, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	City: Large	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Public
Calendar system	Non Traditional	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	100.0%	87.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	54.5%	92.3%
Application fees		Undergraduate: $65 Graduate: $65
SAT range	N/A	1140 - 1360
ACT range	N/A	25 - 31
Students submitting SAT score		32.0%
Students submitting ACT score		6.0%
Total number of applicants	154	96,686
Total number of admissions given out	84	89,207
Admitted students who chose to enroll	38	16,049
Yield rate	45.2%	18.0%
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	$36,459	In state: $38,270 Out of state: $55,848
Average net price	$9,966	$24,012
Tuition	$13,320	In state: $18,368 Out of state: $35,946
Room & board		Room/dormitory: $7,360 Meal plan: $5,618
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $8,610	51.0% Average amount $9,884
Students receiving federal student loan		49.0% Average amount $5,305
Students taking out private loans		13.0% Average amount $19,837

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	7,648 Men 47.1% Women 52.9%	73,476 Men 53.7% Women 46.3%
Graduate students	9,487 Men 28.7% Women 71.3%	15,438 Men 51.7% Women 48.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	34.1%
International students	0.6%	10.5%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	N/A	20,547
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Maryland Virginia

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Health Professions Psychology Business Law Enforcement and Firefighting	Business Engineering Computer and Information Science Health Professions Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	16:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	46.7%	72.3%
Dropout rate	N/A	25.7%
Transferred out	43.3%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $94,452 Year 2: $81,333 Year 3: $97,514 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $77,429 Year 2: $84,653 Year 3: $94,326 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $85,563 Year 2: $84,367 Year 3: $90,127 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $84,898 Year 2: $83,505 Year 3: $87,794 Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,729 Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: $82,008 Educational/Instructional Media Design (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,709 Year 2: $66,821 Year 3: $81,966 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $67,545 Year 2: $75,989 Year 3: $77,049 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $52,576 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $76,724 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $63,716 Year 2: $65,238 Year 3: $74,055 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,949 Year 2: $65,657 Year 3: $73,109	Information Science/Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,295 Year 2: $120,549 Year 3: $125,527 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,798 Year 2: $95,930 Year 3: $120,289 Computer Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,190 Year 2: $97,959 Year 3: $113,544 Mining and Mineral Engineering (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $98,403 Year 3: $108,754 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,372 Year 2: $100,455 Year 3: $107,874 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $96,574 Year 2: $99,291 Year 3: $104,370 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $95,304 Year 2: $97,855 Year 3: $104,056 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $92,512 Year 2: $94,864 Year 3: $103,461 Management Information Systems and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $92,632 Year 3: $98,201 Nuclear Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $89,155 Year 3: $94,780

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