Norfolk State vs Winston-Salem State University (WSSU)

Norfolk State University and Winston-Salem State University, both historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), offer unique educational experiences to their students. Norfolk State, located in Norfolk, Virginia, has an acceptance rate of 68%, while Winston-Salem State, situated in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, has an acceptance rate of 58%. Both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs, with popular majors including business, education, and nursing. Norfolk State has a slightly larger student body, with over 5,000 undergraduate students compared to Winston-Salem State's 4,500. Additionally, Norfolk State boasts a higher graduation rate, with 44% of students completing their degrees within six years compared to Winston-Salem State's 38%. To help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these and other key differences between the two institutions.

	Norfolk State University	Winston-Salem State University
Overview
Location	Norfolk, Virginia	Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Campus setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
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	66.0%	76.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.6%	81.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $25 Graduate: $50	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50
SAT range	860 - 1083	880 - 1040
ACT range	15 - 20	15 - 19
Students submitting SAT score	19.0%	7.0%
Students submitting ACT score	5.0%	35.0%
Total number of applicants	6,490	5,419
Total number of admissions given out	5,753	4,415
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,113	912
Yield rate	19.3%	20.7%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	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: $26,710 Out of state: $37,878	In state: $23,252 Out of state: $33,908
Average net price	$12,264	$12,976
Tuition	In state: $5,752 Out of state: $16,920	In state: $3,401 Out of state: $14,057
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,206 Meal plan: $3,638	Room/dormitory: $7,568 Meal plan: $3,872
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	92.0% Average amount $11,764	87.0% Average amount $7,752
Students receiving federal student loan	73.0% Average amount $8,821	78.0% Average amount $6,071
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $14,029	3.0% Average amount $9,995

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	5,016 Men 32.3% Women 67.7%	4,726 Men 23.8% Women 76.2%
Graduate students	442 Men 36.7% Women 63.3%	500 Men 19.0% Women 81.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	16.1%
International students	1.2%	1.2%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,917	2,423
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	North Carolina South Carolina Maryland District of Columbia Virginia

Academics
Popular study areas	Psychology Public Administration and Social Service Health Professions Communication and Journalism Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Health Professions Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Business Liberal Arts Education
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	16:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	37.1%	45.8%
Dropout rate	32.8%	26.8%
Transferred out	27.1%	25.9%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $45,411 Year 2: $45,500 Year 3: $48,385 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $41,654 Year 2: $45,305 Year 3: $47,407 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $58,881 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $85,095 Year 2: $88,195 Year 3: $101,566 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $69,950 Year 2: $73,446 Year 3: $77,785 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,779 Year 2: $62,067 Year 3: $64,434 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,681 Year 2: $59,837 Year 3: $62,855 Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,993 Year 2: $47,930 Year 3: $54,205 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,515 Year 2: $31,708 Year 3: $36,585 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,333 Year 2: $32,094 Year 3: $35,280 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,123 Year 2: $30,554 Year 3: $34,927 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,639 Year 2: $31,133 Year 3: $34,903 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,801 Year 2: $21,850 Year 3: $32,247

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.

Norfolk State vs Winston-Salem State University (WSSU)

Norfolk State University

Winston-Salem State University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

Compare Similar Colleges

Find Colleges By State

Resources

About