Southern Oregon University (SOU) vs Washington State University (WSU)

Southern Oregon University (SOU) and Washington State University (WSU) are two distinct institutions of higher learning, each offering unique opportunities and experiences to their students. SOU, nestled in the picturesque Rogue Valley of Oregon, is a public liberal arts university known for its small class sizes, personalized attention, and strong sense of community. WSU, on the other hand, is a large, public research university located in the vibrant city of Pullman, Washington. With its extensive academic offerings, nationally recognized research programs, and Division I athletics, WSU attracts a diverse student body from across the globe. While both universities share a commitment to academic excellence, they differ in terms of acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Southern Oregon University	Washington State University
Overview
Location	Ashland, Oregon	Pullman, Washington
Campus setting	Suburb: Midsize	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Quarter	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	69.0%	81.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	89.7%	85.8%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $60	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $75
SAT range	980 - 1230	N/A
ACT range	18 - 25	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	32.0%
Students submitting ACT score	21.0%
Total number of applicants	1,913	18,197
Total number of admissions given out	1,716	15,607
Admitted students who chose to enroll	519	4,007
Yield rate	30.2%	25.7%
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: $25,142 Out of state: $42,962	In state: $28,767 Out of state: $44,083
Average net price	$12,134	$11,877
Tuition	In state: $9,045 Out of state: $26,865	In state: $10,457 Out of state: $25,773
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,235 Meal plan: $5,925	Room/dormitory: $7,400 Meal plan: $4,350
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	75.0% Average amount $5,932	86.0% Average amount $9,993
Students receiving federal student loan	42.0% Average amount $4,778	27.0% Average amount $5,042
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	3.0% Average amount $15,454

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	4,396 Men 38.7% Women 61.3%	24,278 Men 45.9% Women 54.1%
Graduate students	783 Men 30.3% Women 69.7%	5,565 Men 44.7% Women 55.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	15.2%
International students	1.1%	5.7%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Midsize	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,000	7,043
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Washington California Oregon Idaho Hawaii

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Business Visual & Performing Arts Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Multidisciplinary Studies	Business Engineering Social Sciences Health Professions Education
Students to faculty ratio	20:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	41.0%	59.5%
Dropout rate	55.3%	38.1%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $46,797 Year 2: $47,729 Year 3: $50,405 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $45,167 Year 2: $47,650 Year 3: $50,120 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,975 Year 2: $40,017 Year 3: $47,745 Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $45,536 Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $47,221 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,746 Year 2: $33,192 Year 3: $42,371 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,398 Year 2: $29,322 Year 3: $40,135 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,901 Year 2: $31,042 Year 3: $34,974 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,131 Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: $33,557 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,663 Year 2: $26,739 Year 3: $32,403 Visual and Performing Arts, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,082 Year 2: $21,312 Year 3: $26,467	Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $135,393 Year 3: $143,888 Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $110,911 Year 2: $123,178 Year 3: $127,531 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,080 Year 2: $100,915 Year 3: $120,737 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,957 Year 2: $112,073 Year 3: $119,910 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $106,275 Year 2: $105,813 Year 3: $117,478 Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $82,971 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $96,760 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $76,468 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $88,746 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $80,693 Year 2: $75,204 Year 3: $81,535 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,112 Year 2: $68,808 Year 3: $80,939 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,531 Year 2: $72,881 Year 3: $79,650

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Southern Oregon University (SOU) vs Washington State University (WSU)

Southern Oregon University

Washington State University

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Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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