Rio Salado vs Mesalands Community College

Rio Salado College and Mesalands Community College, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to students seeking a solid foundation for their academic and professional pursuits. Rio Salado College, located in Tempe, Arizona, stands out with its open admissions policy, welcoming students from all backgrounds, while Mesalands Community College, nestled in Tucumcari, New Mexico, boasts a smaller student body, fostering a close-knit community. While both colleges offer a diverse range of programs, Rio Salado College excels in online learning, providing flexibility to students with busy schedules, and Mesalands Community College shines in its strong focus on career and technical education, preparing students for immediate entry into the workforce. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover more about these institutions, including acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates, and make an informed decision that aligns with your educational goals and aspirations.

	Mesalands Community College	Rio Salado College
Overview
Location	Tucumcari, New Mexico	Tempe, Arizona
Campus setting	Town: Remote	City: Midsize
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	56.0%	37.0%
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: $17,176 Out of state: $18,448	In state: $14,542 Out of state: $20,326
Average net price	$6,228	$9,426
Tuition	In state: $1,512 Out of state: $2,784	In state: $2,040 Out of state: $7,824
Room & board
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $6,030	71.0% Average amount $5,379
Students receiving federal student loan	9.0% Average amount $2,750	26.0% Average amount $4,710
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	745 Men 62.6% Women 37.4%	15,682 Men 40.6% Women 59.4%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	12.0%
International students	N/A	0.2%
Campus local/setting	Town: Remote	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	32	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Arizona California Texas Louisiana Alabama

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Technologies Liberal Arts Education Precision Production Health Professions	Law Enforcement and Firefighting Business Liberal Arts Visual & Performing Arts Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	25:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	45.0%	8.5%
Dropout rate	40.0%	64.9%
Transferred out	7.5%	20.2%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electromechanical Instrumentation and Maintenance Technologies/Technicians (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: N/A	Criminal Justice and Corrections (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $42,986 Year 2: $41,884 Year 3: $44,530 Business Operations Support and Assistant Services (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $42,922 Year 2: $34,348 Year 3: $39,074 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $37,704 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: $34,090 Legal Support Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,047 Year 3: $28,264 Data Processing (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $33,938 Year 3: N/A Dental Support Services and Allied Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: N/A

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.

Mesalands Community College

Mohave Community College