Tarleton State vs Southern Methodist University (SMU)

Tarleton State University and Southern Methodist University, two distinct institutions of higher learning in Texas, offer unique educational experiences to prospective students. Tarleton State, a public university with a rich history dating back to 1899, boasts an acceptance rate of 85%, making it a more accessible option for students. In contrast, Southern Methodist University, a private research university founded in 1911, has a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 48%. While both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate and graduate programs, Tarleton State is known for its strengths in agriculture, business, and education, while Southern Methodist University excels in fields such as engineering, business, and the arts. Explore the detailed comparison table below to delve into further distinctions between these two esteemed universities, including student body demographics, graduation rates, and additional factors that may influence your decision in choosing the ideal academic environment for your educational journey.

	Southern Methodist University	Tarleton State University
Overview
Location	Dallas, Texas	Stephenville, Texas
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Remote
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	91.0%	70.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation	Methodism

Admission
Acceptance rate	53.1%	56.8%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50
SAT range	1340 - 1510	960 - 1140
ACT range	31 - 34	17 - 23
Students submitting SAT score	16.0%	46.0%
Students submitting ACT score	23.0%	27.0%
Total number of applicants	15,685	10,657
Total number of admissions given out	8,333	6,054
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,572	2,150
Yield rate	18.9%	35.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$72,336	In state: $22,286 Out of state: $32,078
Average net price	$41,986	$13,752
Tuition	$53,464	In state: $4,416 Out of state: $14,208
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $10,860 Meal plan: $6,578	Room/dormitory: $6,138 Meal plan: $4,068
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	74.0% Average amount $34,940	80.0% Average amount $8,110
Students receiving federal student loan	25.0% Average amount $5,241	56.0% Average amount $8,327
Students taking out private loans	5.0% Average amount $29,055	7.0% Average amount $13,605

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	6,908 Men 50.5% Women 49.5%	11,666 Men 36.3% Women 63.7%
Graduate students	5,477 Men 52.4% Women 47.6%	2,329 Men 31.6% Women 68.4%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	59.4%	2.7%
International students	8.1%	0.7%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Remote
Dormitory capacity	3,403	3,906
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Texas California Florida New York Illinois	Texas California Arkansas Colorado Florida

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Engineering Education Legal Profession Computer and Information Science	Health Professions Multidisciplinary Studies Business Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Agriculture
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	21:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	82.4%	48.8%
Dropout rate	4.7%	17.3%
Transferred out	12.4%	31.1%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,915 Year 2: $111,196 Year 3: $127,135 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,537 Year 2: $120,363 Year 3: $120,106 Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,239 Year 2: $101,558 Year 3: $116,891 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $104,021 Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $112,196 Marketing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $89,842 Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $107,302 Computer Systems Analysis (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $108,251 Year 2: $81,491 Year 3: $100,026 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,824 Year 2: $86,867 Year 3: $99,671 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $81,633 Year 2: $81,554 Year 3: $99,143 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,678 Year 2: $73,446 Year 3: $89,611 Operations Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $89,319	Information Science/Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $75,511 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,941 Year 2: $60,013 Year 3: $69,141 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $48,678 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $67,101 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,485 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $66,332 Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,487 Year 2: $51,482 Year 3: $64,639 Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $55,500 Year 2: $59,576 Year 3: $62,108 Engineering Technology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $56,641 Year 3: $61,489 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $50,645 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $59,754 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,322 Year 2: $48,041 Year 3: $52,771 Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $46,771 Year 2: $48,237 Year 3: $52,290

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Tarleton State vs Southern Methodist University (SMU)

Southern Methodist University

Tarleton State University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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