Santa Clara U vs California Lutheran University

Santa Clara University and California Lutheran University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning in California, offer distinct educational experiences. Santa Clara, a Jesuit university, boasts a lower acceptance rate (54%) compared to Cal Lutheran's (73%), indicating a more selective admissions process. While Santa Clara's student body is more diverse, with 49% identifying as non-white, Cal Lutheran's student body is predominantly white (69%). Both universities offer a range of popular majors, including business, engineering, and nursing, but Santa Clara has a higher graduation rate (86%) than Cal Lutheran (79%). Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more key differences and make an informed decision about which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	California Lutheran University	Santa Clara University
Overview
Location	Thousand Oaks, California	Santa Clara, California
Campus setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	83.0%	94.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Evangelical	Catholic

Admission
Acceptance rate	81.9%	54.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $25 Graduate: $50	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $73
SAT range	1090 - 1290	1330 - 1490
ACT range	23 - 28	30 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	17.0%	23.0%
Students submitting ACT score	5.0%	16.0%
Total number of applicants	4,041	16,848
Total number of admissions given out	3,311	9,095
Admitted students who chose to enroll	492	1,549
Yield rate	14.9%	17.0%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$69,251	$78,999
Average net price	$24,065	$48,469
Tuition	$45,500	$55,224
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,130 Meal plan: $6,840	$16,533
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	98.0% Average amount $30,924	73.0% Average amount $23,770
Students receiving federal student loan	53.0% Average amount $5,462	24.0% Average amount $5,138
Students taking out private loans	5.0% Average amount $23,023	2.0% Average amount $30,446

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,592 Men 46.8% Women 53.2%	5,895 Men 52.7% Women 47.3%
Graduate students	1,174 Men 38.3% Women 61.7%	3,023 Men 46.0% Women 54.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	17.2%	44.6%
International students	6.1%	12.6%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	1,517	3,551
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Hawaii Colorado Texas	California Washington Colorado Oregon Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Education Communication and Journalism Computer and Information Science Kinesiology & Leisure Studies	Business Engineering Legal Profession Education Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	14:1	11:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	73.8%	90.9%
Dropout rate	4.9%	9.0%
Transferred out	20.8%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $95,459 Year 2: $108,092 Year 3: $110,763 Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,377 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $88,791 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $76,491 Year 2: $75,011 Year 3: $76,443 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,247 Year 2: $57,995 Year 3: $73,469 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,706 Year 2: $55,512 Year 3: $62,953 Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,621 Year 2: $56,641 Year 3: $59,516 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,707 Year 2: $48,823 Year 3: $56,640 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $58,014 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $55,305 Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,687 Year 2: $46,478 Year 3: $52,964 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,541 Year 2: $36,275 Year 3: $52,663	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $125,643 Year 2: $128,588 Year 3: $140,820 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,523 Year 2: $103,449 Year 3: $131,051 Computer Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $125,788 Year 2: $104,192 Year 3: $129,018 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $74,729 Year 2: $68,379 Year 3: $100,639 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,066 Year 2: $86,424 Year 3: $96,312 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $74,547 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $94,288 Law (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $86,424 Year 3: $93,193 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,821 Year 2: $70,456 Year 3: $90,013 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $79,473 Year 3: $88,047 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,828 Year 2: $69,740 Year 3: $87,254

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