Northwest College vs Washington State University (WSU)

Northwest College and Washington State University, two esteemed institutions of higher learning in Washington State, offer distinct educational experiences tailored to diverse student aspirations. Northwest College, a community college located in Powell, Wyoming, prides itself on its open admissions policy, welcoming students from all backgrounds and academic levels. In contrast, Washington State University, a public research university with campuses in Pullman, Spokane, and Vancouver, maintains a selective admissions process, ensuring a rigorous academic environment. While both institutions offer a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs, Northwest College specializes in associate degrees and career-oriented certificates, while Washington State University excels in research-intensive programs and doctoral degrees. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details about acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, graduation rates, and more, empowering you to make an informed decision that aligns with your academic goals and personal preferences.

	Northwest College	Washington State University
Overview
Location	Powell, Wyoming	Pullman, Washington
Campus setting	Town: Remote	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate		81.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	Open Admission	85.8%
Application fees		Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $75
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants		18,197
Total number of admissions given out		15,607
Admitted students who chose to enroll		4,007
Yield rate		25.7%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	Not required	N/A
High school GPA	N/A	Required
Recommendation letters	N/A	Not required
High school transcript	N/A	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	N/A	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $20,544 Out of state: $26,844	In state: $28,767 Out of state: $44,083
Average net price	$8,114	$11,877
Tuition	In state: $3,150 Out of state: $9,450	In state: $10,457 Out of state: $25,773
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $3,090 Meal plan: $3,290	Room/dormitory: $7,400 Meal plan: $4,350
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	93.0% Average amount $8,647	86.0% Average amount $9,993
Students receiving federal student loan	17.0% Average amount $4,879	27.0% Average amount $5,042
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $14,652	3.0% Average amount $15,454

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,427 Men 40.2% Women 59.8%	24,278 Men 45.9% Women 54.1%
Graduate students	N/A	5,565 Men 44.7% Women 55.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	25.7%	15.2%
International students	2.7%	5.7%
Campus local/setting	Town: Remote	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	632	7,043
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Wyoming Montana California Colorado Idaho	Washington California Oregon Idaho Hawaii

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Liberal Arts Visual & Performing Arts Agriculture Education	Business Engineering Social Sciences Health Professions Education
Students to faculty ratio	14:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	38.9%	59.5%
Dropout rate	36.7%	38.1%
Transferred out	20.1%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $54,781 Year 2: $50,439 Year 3: $53,642 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $17,846 Year 3: $24,183 Design and Applied Arts (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $24,597 Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $21,449 Precision Metal Working (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $33,814 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $135,393 Year 3: $143,888 Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $110,911 Year 2: $123,178 Year 3: $127,531 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,080 Year 2: $100,915 Year 3: $120,737 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,957 Year 2: $112,073 Year 3: $119,910 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $106,275 Year 2: $105,813 Year 3: $117,478 Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $82,971 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $96,760 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $76,468 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $88,746 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $80,693 Year 2: $75,204 Year 3: $81,535 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,112 Year 2: $68,808 Year 3: $80,939 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,531 Year 2: $72,881 Year 3: $79,650

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