Northern Arizona University (NAU) vs South Dakota State University (SDSU)

Northern Arizona University (NAU) and South Dakota State University (SDSU) are two distinct universities with unique offerings. NAU, located in Flagstaff, Arizona, boasts an acceptance rate of 84%, while SDSU in Brookings, South Dakota, has a slightly lower acceptance rate of 79%. Both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with NAU excelling in fields like Business, Education, and Health Professions, and SDSU excelling in Agriculture, Engineering, and Nursing. NAU's student body is more diverse, with 30% of students identifying as minorities compared to SDSU's 17%. Additionally, NAU has a higher graduation rate of 62% compared to SDSU's 58%. To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting key differences between these two universities. Explore the table to discover which institution better aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Northern Arizona University	South Dakota State University
Overview
Location	Flagstaff, Arizona	Brookings, South Dakota
Campus setting	City: Small	Town: Remote
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	74.0%	80.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	78.4%	87.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $25 Graduate: $65	Undergraduate: $20 Graduate: $35
SAT range	N/A	980 - 1220
ACT range	N/A	19 - 25
Students submitting SAT score		3.0%
Students submitting ACT score		86.0%
Total number of applicants	42,872	5,774
Total number of admissions given out	33,592	5,048
Admitted students who chose to enroll	5,297	2,019
Yield rate	15.8%	40.0%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $28,430 Out of state: $43,176	In state: $24,304 Out of state: $27,814
Average net price	$16,059	$17,859
Tuition	In state: $10,650 Out of state: $25,396	In state: $7,773 Out of state: $11,283
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $6,000 Meal plan: $5,338	Room/dormitory: $4,054 Meal plan: $4,082
Available payment plans	Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	97.0% Average amount $12,922	81.0% Average amount $4,747
Students receiving federal student loan	34.0% Average amount $5,314	60.0% Average amount $5,063
Students taking out private loans	4.0% Average amount $13,306	17.0% Average amount $9,956

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	24,162 Men 37.0% Women 63.0%	9,847 Men 45.2% Women 54.8%
Graduate students	4,549 Men 32.1% Women 67.9%	1,618 Men 37.3% Women 62.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	31.9%	N/A
International students	2.2%	5.1%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Town: Remote
Dormitory capacity	9,853	4,488
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Arizona California Colorado Nevada New Mexico	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Health Professions Business Engineering Public Administration and Social Service	Health Professions Engineering Family and Consumer Sciences Education Agriculture
Students to faculty ratio	21:1	17:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	59.0%	59.5%
Dropout rate	40.0%	38.9%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $94,560 Year 2: $101,406 Year 3: $108,112 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,716 Year 2: $92,632 Year 3: $96,135 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $80,374 Year 2: $79,081 Year 3: $89,768 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,244 Year 2: $76,117 Year 3: $81,532 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,225 Year 2: $74,890 Year 3: $79,106 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,718 Year 2: $68,219 Year 3: $75,432 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $71,725 Year 2: $71,183 Year 3: $71,928 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,840 Year 2: $59,350 Year 3: $70,793 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $58,911 Year 2: $65,042 Year 3: $70,433 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,712 Year 2: $54,252 Year 3: $68,199	Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $110,688 Year 2: $117,014 Year 3: $126,250 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $92,277 Year 3: $114,802 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,967 Year 2: $74,845 Year 3: $81,032 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,229 Year 2: $61,322 Year 3: $70,114 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,268 Year 2: $59,124 Year 3: $62,932 Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,985 Year 2: $56,234 Year 3: $61,104 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,372 Year 2: $57,860 Year 3: $60,463 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,551 Year 2: $56,776 Year 3: $59,988 Plant Sciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,213 Year 2: $55,151 Year 3: $55,715 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $43,798 Year 3: $54,439

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