Southern Illinois University-Carbondale (SIU) vs Eastern Illinois University (EIU)

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale (SIU-C) and Eastern Illinois University (EIU) are two public universities located in Illinois, each with its own unique strengths and characteristics. SIU-C, with an acceptance rate of 84%, is slightly more selective than EIU, which has an acceptance rate of 90%. Both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs, with popular majors including business, education, and nursing. SIU-C has a larger student body, with over 12,000 undergraduate students compared to EIU's 7,000. Additionally, SIU-C has a higher graduation rate, with 58% of students completing their degrees within six years compared to EIU's 49%. To help you make an informed decision about which university is the right fit for you, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these and other key differences between SIU-C
Eastern Illinois University logo

Eastern Illinois University

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale logo

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale

Overview

Location Charleston, Illinois Carbondale, Illinois
Campus setting Town: Distant 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 74.0% 75.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission

Acceptance rate 71.7% 95.1%
Application fees $30
Undergraduate: $40

Graduate: $65
SAT range 900 - 1140 930 - 1160
ACT range 17 - 23 20 - 28
Students submitting SAT score 56.0% 43.0%
Students submitting ACT score 66.0% 18.0%
Total number of applicants 7,145 6,987
Total number of admissions given out 5,126 6,648
Admitted students who chose to enroll 778 1,422
Yield rate 15.2% 21.4%
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 Not required

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price
In state: $25,316

Out of state: $27,684
$29,903
Average net price $13,669 $15,976
Tuition
In state: $9,472

Out of state: $11,840
$9,638
Room & board $10,548
Room/dormitory: $6,292

Meal plan: $4,330
Available payment plans
  • Prepaid tuition plan
  • Guaranteed tuition plan
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Guaranteed tuition plan
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

99.0%
Average amount $10,756
91.0%
Average amount $13,301
Students receiving federal student loan 62.0%
Average amount $5,140
55.0%
Average amount $5,362
Students taking out private loans 7.0%
Average amount $10,570
8.0%
Average amount $12,619

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 6,903
Men 40.6% Women 59.4%
8,147
Men 51.4% Women 48.6%
Graduate students 1,705
Men 37.5% Women 62.5%
3,119
Men 46.3% Women 53.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Low
Low
Out-of-state students 9.6% 17.5%
International students 4.6% 7.7%
Campus local/setting Town: Distant City: Small
Dormitory capacity 4,304 4,492
First year students are required to live on campus? No No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from Illinois Indiana Ohio Missouri Texas Illinois Missouri Indiana Tennessee Wisconsin

Academics

Popular study areas
  • Education
  • Business
  • Engineering Technologies
  • Health Professions
  • Communication and Journalism
  • Health Professions
  • Education
  • Engineering Technologies
  • Biological and Biomedical Sciences
  • Transportation and Logistics
Students to faculty ratio 14:1 10:1
Institutional accreditation Higher Learning Commission Higher Learning Commission

Outcome

Graduation rate 50.7% 45.3%
Dropout rate 15.9% 53.2%
Transferred out 32.6% N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $50,607
  • Year 2: $54,386
  • Year 3: $65,635
Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $63,284
  • Year 2: $59,350
  • Year 3: $64,761
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $40,936
  • Year 2: $61,020
  • Year 3: $64,356
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $40,964
  • Year 2: $50,677
  • Year 3: $61,384
Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $48,053
  • Year 2: $46,673
  • Year 3: $59,023
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $60,088
  • Year 2: $50,856
  • Year 3: $57,084
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $51,985
  • Year 2: $53,894
  • Year 3: $56,317
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $47,260
  • Year 3: $49,482
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $35,479
  • Year 2: $41,565
  • Year 3: $47,585
Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $40,850
  • Year 2: $40,768
  • Year 3: $47,302
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $101,053
  • Year 2: $104,597
  • Year 3: $108,594
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $65,138
  • Year 2: $65,905
  • Year 3: $75,851
Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $63,097
  • Year 2: $64,068
  • Year 3: $70,959
Medicine (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $55,319
  • Year 2: $57,318
  • Year 3: $66,942
Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $54,274
  • Year 2: $58,673
  • Year 3: $66,280
Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $59,465
  • Year 2: $58,221
  • Year 3: $62,788
Architecture (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $52,426
  • Year 2: $53,219
  • Year 3: $62,608
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $57,372
  • Year 2: $55,211
  • Year 3: $62,306
Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $52,213
  • Year 2: $55,061
  • Year 3: $62,169
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $49,024
  • Year 2: $49,840
  • Year 3: $62,089

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.
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