Northwest-Shoals Community College vs Jefferson State

Northwest-Shoals Community College and Jefferson State Community College, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer diverse educational opportunities to students in Alabama. While they share a commitment to academic excellence, they also possess distinct characteristics that cater to different student needs. Northwest-Shoals, with its smaller student body and higher acceptance rate, fosters a close-knit community feel, while Jefferson State's larger size and lower acceptance rate provide a more vibrant and diverse campus experience. Explore the detailed comparison table below to delve into further differences, including popular majors, student body demographics, graduation rates, and more, to determine which college best aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Jefferson State Community College	Northwest-Shoals Community College
Overview
Location	Birmingham, Alabama	Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Campus setting	City: Midsize	City: Small
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	59.0%	65.0%
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: $26,297 Out of state: $29,987	In state: $16,301 Out of state: $19,991
Average net price	$9,675	$3,493
Tuition	In state: $3,690 Out of state: $7,380	In state: $3,690 Out of state: $7,380
Room & board
Available payment plans		Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	62.0% Average amount $6,369	95.0% Average amount $5,952
Students receiving federal student loan	26.0% Average amount $3,311	24.0% Average amount $2,779
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,519 Men 36.2% Women 63.8%	3,371 Men 43.1% Women 56.9%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	1.5%
International students	1.3%	0.6%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Small
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	N/A	Alabama Tennessee Illinois

Academics
Popular study areas	Liberal Arts Health Professions Business Engineering Technologies Culinary and Personal Services	Liberal Arts Precision Production Health Professions Construction Trades Engineering Technologies
Students to faculty ratio	19:1	17:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	21.4%	26.0%
Dropout rate	29.4%	39.1%
Transferred out	35.3%	21.9%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $53,304 Year 2: $52,622 Year 3: $54,204 Engineering Technology, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $42,023 Year 2: $48,432 Year 3: $49,786 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $34,680 Year 2: $44,032 Year 3: $47,360 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $45,611 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $44,622 Funeral Service and Mortuary Science (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $44,315 Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $36,719 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $22,917 Year 2: $25,580 Year 3: $30,599 Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $33,664 Year 2: $29,685 Year 3: $30,000 Hospitality Administration/Management (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,525 Year 3: $24,870 Business Operations Support and Assistant Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $30,761 Year 2: $25,658 Year 3: $24,093 Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $21,591	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $44,933 Year 2: $43,922 Year 3: $43,540 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $19,388 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $21,522 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A

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