PAFA School vs Carnegie Mellon

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) stand as two distinct institutions of higher learning, each offering unique educational experiences. PAFA, with its focus on visual arts, boasts a long history of nurturing artistic talent, while CMU, renowned for its technological prowess, has gained acclaim in fields like computer science and engineering. While both universities share a commitment to academic excellence, they differ in several key aspects, including acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Carnegie Mellon University	Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Overview
Location	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	City: Large	City: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	97.0%	84.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	13.5%	83.6%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $60
SAT range	1480 - 1560	N/A
ACT range	33 - 35	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	48.0%
Students submitting ACT score	22.0%
Total number of applicants	32,896	122
Total number of admissions given out	4,453	102
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,896	10
Yield rate	42.6%	9.8%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$75,664	$66,804
Average net price	$37,450	$29,925
Tuition	$57,560	$38,926
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,614 Meal plan: $6,536
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	50.0% Average amount $39,421	100.0% Average amount $29,528
Students receiving federal student loan	37.0% Average amount $4,672	61.0% Average amount $5,864
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $29,079	0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	6,932 Men 50.2% Women 49.8%	121 Men 24.0% Women 76.0%
Graduate students	8,125 Men 62.3% Women 37.7%	57 Men 21.1% Women 78.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	85.0%	N/A
International students	40.0%	6.7%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	3,754	37
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Virginia	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Computer and Information Science Business Visual & Performing Arts Physical Science	Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	5:1	4:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	92.8%	47.2%
Dropout rate	3.5%	33.3%
Transferred out	2.8%	16.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $161,723 Year 2: $160,116 Year 3: $201,541 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $139,390 Year 2: $133,383 Year 3: $150,136 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,615 Year 2: $107,758 Year 3: $132,201 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $116,935 Year 2: $114,223 Year 3: $129,112 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,283 Year 2: $120,549 Year 3: $122,667 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $95,295 Year 3: $112,628 Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $85,041 Year 2: $89,859 Year 3: $106,086 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,653 Year 2: $94,940 Year 3: $104,312 Statistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,636 Year 2: $88,506 Year 3: $103,853 Systems Science and Theory (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $82,123 Year 2: $84,393 Year 3: $103,805	Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,722 Year 2: $19,749 Year 3: $28,395 Fine and Studio Arts (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $27,413 Year 2: $22,764 Year 3: $26,502

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PAFA School vs Carnegie Mellon

Carnegie Mellon University

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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