Southern State Community College vs Northwest-Shoals Community College

Southern State Community College and Northwest-Shoals Community College, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to students in the southeastern United States. While they share similarities in their commitment to academic excellence and affordability, they also possess distinct characteristics that set them apart. Southern State boasts a higher acceptance rate, making it a more accessible option for students from diverse backgrounds. Northwest-Shoals, on the other hand, has a slightly higher graduation rate, indicating its dedication to student success. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details regarding acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates, empowering you to make an informed decision about which college aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Northwest-Shoals Community College	Southern State Community College
Overview
Location	Muscle Shoals, Alabama	Hillsboro, Ohio
Campus setting	City: Small	Town: Distant
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	65.0%	53.0%
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: $16,301 Out of state: $19,991	In state: $13,947 Out of state: $18,328
Average net price	$3,493	$7,141
Tuition	In state: $3,690 Out of state: $7,380	In state: $4,907 Out of state: $9,288
Room & board
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	95.0% Average amount $5,952	69.0% Average amount $5,574
Students receiving federal student loan	24.0% Average amount $2,779	35.0% Average amount $4,694
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,371 Men 43.1% Women 56.9%	1,933 Men 31.2% Women 68.8%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	1.5%	0.5%
International students	0.6%	N/A
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	N/A	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Alabama Tennessee Illinois	Ohio South Carolina

Academics
Popular study areas	Liberal Arts Precision Production Health Professions Construction Trades Engineering Technologies	Liberal Arts Business Health Professions Law Enforcement and Firefighting Education
Students to faculty ratio	17:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	26.0%	29.8%
Dropout rate	39.1%	44.4%
Transferred out	21.9%	16.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $44,933 Year 2: $43,922 Year 3: $43,540 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $19,388 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $21,522 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $56,699 Year 2: $49,797 Year 3: $51,548 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $22,120 Year 2: $24,267 Year 3: $30,583 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: N/A Business Administration, Management and Operations (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $32,331 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A

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