Southern Union State Community College vs Shelton State Community College

Southern Union State Community College and Shelton State Community College, both esteemed institutions of higher learning in Alabama, offer unique educational experiences tailored to diverse student aspirations. Southern Union, with an acceptance rate of 100%, welcomes all qualified applicants, while Shelton State maintains a slightly more selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 98%. Southern Union's student body is predominantly female (62%), while Shelton State boasts a more balanced gender distribution (52% female, 48% male). Both colleges offer a wide range of academic programs, with popular majors including Business, Health Sciences, and Education. However, Shelton State additionally excels in STEM fields, with Engineering and Computer Science among its strengths. While Southern Union boasts a higher graduation rate (43%) compared to Shelton State's 38%, both institutions are committed to providing students with the necessary support and resources to achieve their academic goals. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve deeper into the distinctions between these two esteemed community

	Shelton State Community College	Southern Union State Community College
Overview
Location	Tuscaloosa, Alabama	Wadley, Alabama
Campus setting	City: Small	Rural: Remote
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	64.0%	66.0%
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: $19,637 Out of state: $23,327	In state: $18,010 Out of state: $21,700
Average net price	$8,662	$9,066
Tuition	In state: $3,690 Out of state: $7,380	In state: $3,690 Out of state: $7,380
Room & board		Room/dormitory: $1,160 Meal plan: $2,040
Available payment plans		Prepaid tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	77.0% Average amount $5,408	71.0% Average amount $7,708
Students receiving federal student loan		22.0% Average amount $4,983
Students taking out private loans		2.0% Average amount $5,746

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	4,659 Men 38.5% Women 61.5%	4,069 Men 43.6% Women 56.4%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	4.2%	8.3%
International students	0.9%	1.1%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Rural: Remote
Dormitory capacity	N/A	460
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Alabama Florida South Carolina Georgia	Alabama Georgia Florida Texas California

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Liberal Arts Automotive Technology Business Precision Production	Liberal Arts Health Professions Automotive Technology Engineering Technologies Precision Production
Students to faculty ratio	19:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	27.5%	16.4%
Dropout rate	41.0%	34.4%
Transferred out	23.0%	44.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technology (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $49,834 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $65,125 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $53,533 Year 2: $53,358 Year 3: $50,068 Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $32,243 Year 2: $46,321 Year 3: $47,874 Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $37,310 Year 2: $37,699 Year 3: $40,603 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $43,234 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $35,934 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $18,950 Year 2: $26,534 Year 3: $25,470 Business Operations Support and Assistant Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $23,018 Year 2: $24,267 Year 3: $23,550 Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $17,060 Year 3: N/A Culinary Arts and Related Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $21,508 Year 3: N/A Electrical and Power Transmission Installers (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $33,093 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $53,094 Year 2: $48,752 Year 3: $52,602 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $34,891 Year 2: $33,007 Year 3: $40,013 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $21,818 Year 2: $19,891 Year 3: $27,722 Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $18,219 Year 2: $15,552 Year 3: N/A Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $16,786 Year 3: N/A Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $48,041 Year 3: N/A Precision Metal Working (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: N/A Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,409 Year 3: N/A Business Operations Support and Assistant Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $22,420 Year 3: N/A

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