Salem State vs Western Connecticut State University (WCSU)

Salem State University and Western Connecticut State University, both esteemed public universities, offer distinct educational experiences. Salem State, located in the vibrant city of Salem, Massachusetts, boasts an acceptance rate of 84%, while Western Connecticut, nestled in the picturesque town of Danbury, Connecticut, has a slightly lower acceptance rate of 79%. Salem State's student body is more diverse, with 44% of students identifying as non-white compared to Western Connecticut's 34%. Both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors including Business, Education, and Psychology. However, Salem State excels in the fields of Nursing and Health Professions, while Western Connecticut is known for its strong programs in Social Sciences and Criminal Justice. With graduation rates of 58% and 56% respectively, both institutions are committed to student success. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more about these two excellent universities and make an informed decision about your academic future.

	Salem State University	Western Connecticut State University
Overview
Location	Salem, Massachusetts	Danbury, Connecticut
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Small
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	75.0%	69.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	90.0%	84.9%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	6,287	4,688
Total number of admissions given out	5,659	3,978
Admitted students who chose to enroll	939	733
Yield rate	16.6%	18.4%
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)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $27,123 Out of state: $33,928	In state: $28,783 Out of state: $42,187
Average net price	$18,125	$15,660
Tuition	In state: $910 Out of state: $7,050	In state: $6,162 Out of state: $18,436
Room & board	$14,590	Room/dormitory: $8,020 Meal plan: $5,856
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	91.0% Average amount $7,673	78.0% Average amount $6,312
Students receiving federal student loan	67.0% Average amount $4,984	58.0% Average amount $7,417
Students taking out private loans	10.0% Average amount $12,948	5.0% Average amount $12,388

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	5,555 Men 34.5% Women 65.5%	4,172 Men 47.6% Women 52.4%
Graduate students	1,576 Men 21.8% Women 78.2%	630 Men 25.4% Women 74.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	28.6%
International students	2.5%	0.4%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	1,928	1,315
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York New Hampshire Connecticut Rhode Island Vermont	Connecticut New York New Jersey Mississippi Maine

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Health Professions Business Public Administration and Social Service Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Business Psychology Health Professions Law Enforcement and Firefighting Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	13:1	11:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	56.8%	52.9%
Dropout rate	40.8%	12.0%
Transferred out	N/A	31.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,461 Year 2: $67,660 Year 3: $81,500 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,690 Year 2: $69,261 Year 3: $74,129 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $61,511 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $69,206 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,183 Year 2: $71,854 Year 3: $64,195 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,356 Year 2: $59,124 Year 3: $61,164 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,191 Year 2: $54,855 Year 3: $59,882 Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $50,049 Year 2: $50,606 Year 3: $53,563 Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $48,859 Year 2: $48,302 Year 3: $52,492 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,960 Year 2: $47,729 Year 3: $51,920 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,346 Year 2: $45,696 Year 3: $51,685	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,081 Year 2: $75,104 Year 3: $76,468 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,332 Year 2: $57,995 Year 3: $70,455 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,994 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $65,192 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $56,867 Year 3: $58,464 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $49,944 Year 2: $46,321 Year 3: $51,949 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,260 Year 2: $41,464 Year 3: $50,288 Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,672 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $49,639 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,963 Year 2: $45,340 Year 3: $47,607 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,029 Year 2: $41,441 Year 3: $44,462 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,205 Year 2: $35,877 Year 3: $43,291

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Salem State vs Western Connecticut State University (WCSU)

Salem State University

Western Connecticut State University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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