RPI Troy vs Vanderbilt

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and Vanderbilt University stand as two distinct beacons of higher education, each offering a unique blend of academic excellence and vibrant campus life. While both institutions share a commitment to providing students with a transformative educational experience, they differ in several key aspects. RPI, a private research university located in Troy, New York, is renowned for its strength in STEM fields, boasting a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 32%. Vanderbilt, a private research university situated in Nashville, Tennessee, offers a more comprehensive range of academic programs, including strong liberal arts and pre-professional offerings, and maintains a slightly higher acceptance rate of 34%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to delve into further distinctions between these two prestigious universities, encompassing acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, graduation rates, and more, to help you make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	Vanderbilt University
Overview
Location	Troy, New York	Nashville, Tennessee
Campus setting	City: Small	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	89.0%	97.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	53.0%	7.1%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $95
SAT range	1360 - 1520	1480 - 1570
ACT range	32 - 34	34 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	43.0%	25.0%
Students submitting ACT score	15.0%	32.0%
Total number of applicants	17,498	47,152
Total number of admissions given out	9,277	3,368
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,322	1,626
Yield rate	14.3%	48.3%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$77,763	$79,538
Average net price	$40,070	$27,553
Tuition	$57,100	$54,840
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,119 Meal plan: $7,260	Room/dormitory: $12,000 Meal plan: $6,376
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	97.0% Average amount $35,754	64.0% Average amount $49,730
Students receiving federal student loan	52.0% Average amount $5,116	10.0% Average amount $4,979
Students taking out private loans	10.0% Average amount $24,172	2.0% Average amount $27,798

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	5,614 Men 69.0% Women 31.0%	7,111 Men 48.9% Women 51.1%
Graduate students	1,160 Men 69.1% Women 30.9%	6,685 Men 39.5% Women 60.5%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	89.5%
International students	19.5%	11.7%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	3,930	5,598
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Tennessee California New York Florida Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Computer and Information Science Business Mathematics and Statistics Physical Science	Health Professions Education Engineering Business Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio	13:1	8:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	84.2%	93.4%
Dropout rate	14.9%	6.4%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $112,746 Year 2: $119,061 Year 3: $127,865 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,880 Year 2: $92,277 Year 3: $111,450 Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,042 Year 2: $88,933 Year 3: $99,954 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,265 Year 2: $87,973 Year 3: $94,503 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,333 Year 2: $79,284 Year 3: $93,665 Applied Mathematics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $81,333 Year 3: $90,716 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,826 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $88,913 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,471 Year 2: $81,702 Year 3: $85,953 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,066 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $84,973 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $65,458 Year 2: $77,213 Year 3: $84,039	Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,041 Year 2: $122,038 Year 3: $169,145 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $129,825 Year 2: $130,517 Year 3: $144,008 Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $131,102 Year 2: $117,572 Year 3: $133,025 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $128,494 Year 2: $127,087 Year 3: $132,454 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $132,293 Year 2: $114,324 Year 3: $130,516 Marketing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $108,764 Year 2: $111,620 Year 3: $121,754 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $126,876 Year 2: $119,805 Year 3: $112,193 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $91,224 Year 2: $104,192 Year 3: $108,525 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,979 Year 2: $93,249 Year 3: $101,010 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,609 Year 2: $80,309 Year 3: $95,754

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RPI Troy vs Vanderbilt

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Vanderbilt University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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