Pacific Lutheran University vs St. Mary's University

Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) and St. Mary's University (SMU) stand out as two distinct institutions of higher learning, each offering unique opportunities and experiences to their students. PLU, a private Lutheran university located in Tacoma, Washington, boasts a higher acceptance rate (78%) compared to SMU's 68%. Both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with PLU excelling in the fields of Business, Health Professions, and Education, while SMU shines in the areas of Business, Nursing, and Social Sciences. While PLU's student body comprises 3,200 undergraduates, SMU's student population is slightly larger, with approximately 4,000 undergraduates. PLU takes pride in its strong graduation rate of 75%, while SMU's graduation rate stands at 68%. To help you make an informed decision about your academic journey, we present a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these aspects

	Pacific Lutheran University	St. Mary's University
Overview
Location	Tacoma, Washington	San Antonio, Texas
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	4-1-4	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	79.0%	71.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Evangelical	Catholic

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.4%	88.5%
Application fees	$55
SAT range	1150 - 1376	N/A
ACT range	22 - 28	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	11.0%
Students submitting ACT score	6.0%
Total number of applicants	3,220	4,305
Total number of admissions given out	2,846	3,808
Admitted students who chose to enroll	510	606
Yield rate	17.9%	15.9%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$63,563	$42,864
Average net price	$23,568	$17,899
Tuition	$46,816	$33,518
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,330 Meal plan: $6,481	Room/dormitory: $7,070 Meal plan: $4,086
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	99.0% Average amount $34,413	99.0% Average amount $26,071
Students receiving federal student loan	45.0% Average amount $5,091	54.0% Average amount $5,583
Students taking out private loans	6.0% Average amount $15,835	6.0% Average amount $14,391

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,373 Men 36.2% Women 63.8%	2,093 Men 41.3% Women 58.7%
Graduate students	333 Men 27.6% Women 72.4%	1,339 Men 42.9% Women 57.1%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	4.5%
International students	1.3%	5.4%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,369	1,560
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Texas New Mexico Colorado Montana Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Business Education Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Visual & Performing Arts	Legal Profession Business Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	11:1	11:1
Institutional accreditation	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	69.4%	59.2%
Dropout rate	30.5%	39.9%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $75,084 Year 2: $92,632 Year 3: $86,573 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,051 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $79,254 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,659 Year 2: $68,875 Year 3: $71,075 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $61,461 Year 2: $54,053 Year 3: $64,188 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,494 Year 2: $45,082 Year 3: $52,405 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,050 Year 2: $46,556 Year 3: $51,610 Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $36,848 Year 3: $49,858 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,589 Year 2: $34,420 Year 3: $47,617 Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,575 Year 2: $35,420 Year 3: $46,377 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $36,674 Year 3: $45,113	Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $55,618 Year 2: $51,458 Year 3: $62,917 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,105 Year 2: $56,931 Year 3: $62,421 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,272 Year 2: $55,512 Year 3: $62,293 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,373 Year 2: $25,967 Year 3: $39,095 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,975 Year 2: $31,133 Year 3: $36,564 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $34,526 Year 3: $35,547 Criminology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,519 Year 2: $31,673 Year 3: $34,251 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,206 Year 2: $28,960 Year 3: $34,018 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $24,035 Year 3: $31,992 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $18,044 Year 2: $26,896 Year 3: $29,126

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Pacific Lutheran University vs St. Mary's University

Pacific Lutheran University

St. Mary's University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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