Northwestern State vs Cal State LA

Northwestern State University of Louisiana and California State University-Los Angeles, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Northwestern State, nestled in the heart of Natchitoches, Louisiana, boasts a close-knit community and a rich history dating back to 1884. In contrast, California State University-Los Angeles, situated in the vibrant city of Los Angeles, California, offers a diverse student body and a wide range of academic programs. While both universities share a commitment to academic excellence, they differ in acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	California State University-Los Angeles	Northwestern State University of Louisiana
Overview
Location	Los Angeles, California	Natchitoches, Louisiana
Campus setting	City: Large	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	73.0%	64.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	90.5%	96.3%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $20 Graduate: $25
SAT range	N/A	920 - 1120
ACT range	N/A	16 - 22
Students submitting SAT score		3.0%
Students submitting ACT score		88.0%
Total number of applicants	29,223	3,738
Total number of admissions given out	26,459	3,599
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,095	1,299
Yield rate	15.5%	36.1%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $32,619 Out of state: $44,499	In state: $25,094 Out of state: $35,882
Average net price	$2,695	$13,500
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $5,180 Out of state: $15,968
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,712 Meal plan: $4,500	Room/dormitory: $5,964 Meal plan: $4,100
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	91.0% Average amount $10,909	93.0% Average amount $9,347
Students receiving federal student loan	11.0% Average amount $4,458	65.0% Average amount $4,878
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $8,862	4.0% Average amount $10,829

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	23,536 Men 40.6% Women 59.4%	9,622 Men 29.0% Women 71.0%
Graduate students	3,977 Men 36.4% Women 63.6%	1,113 Men 19.1% Women 80.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	1.1%	1.3%
International students	5.9%	1.5%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	Town: Remote
Dormitory capacity	2,565	1,492
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Illinois Minnesota Hawaii Maryland	Louisiana Texas California Colorado Mississippi

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Engineering Psychology Public Administration and Social Service	Health Professions Liberal Arts Education Biological and Biomedical Sciences Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	25:1	19:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	51.9%	44.1%
Dropout rate	39.4%	52.7%
Transferred out	3.1%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $112,257 Year 2: $103,746 Year 3: $117,496 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $75,475 Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $103,691 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,250 Year 2: $82,440 Year 3: $99,815 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $90,684 Year 2: $87,548 Year 3: $93,771 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,852 Year 2: $58,673 Year 3: $83,310 Civil Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $70,456 Year 3: $82,904 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $81,004 Year 2: $74,367 Year 3: $80,425 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,165 Year 2: $59,124 Year 3: $77,214 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,370 Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: $72,371 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,775 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $71,643	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,397 Year 2: $91,152 Year 3: $97,402 Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,057 Year 2: $59,350 Year 3: $74,454 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,885 Year 2: $63,326 Year 3: $66,285 Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,023 Year 2: $45,696 Year 3: $60,510 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $63,860 Year 2: $60,226 Year 3: $58,469 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,493 Year 2: $43,957 Year 3: $53,304 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $32,570 Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $51,224 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $45,699 Year 2: $48,432 Year 3: $49,876 English Language and Literature, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $35,535 Year 2: $45,277 Year 3: $45,495 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $41,907 Year 2: $43,277 Year 3: $44,409

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.