Montana U vs CWU-Ellensburg

Envision yourself immersed in the vibrant college towns of Missoula, Montana, and Ellensburg, Washington, home to The University of Montana (UM) and Central Washington University (CWU), respectively. While both universities share a commitment to academic excellence and student success, they offer distinct experiences. UM boasts a higher acceptance rate, welcoming a diverse student body from across the globe. CWU, on the other hand, maintains a smaller student population, fostering a close-knit community. Explore the detailed comparison table below to delve into further differences, including popular majors, graduation rates, and more, to help you make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Central Washington University	The University of Montana
Overview
Location	Ellensburg, Washington	Missoula, Montana
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
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%	75.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.4%	82.1%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $30 Graduate: $60
SAT range	N/A	1070 - 1280
ACT range	N/A	18 - 26
Students submitting SAT score		9.0%
Students submitting ACT score		41.0%
Total number of applicants	10,767	7,233
Total number of admissions given out	9,523	5,941
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,371	1,542
Yield rate	14.4%	26.0%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,248 Out of state: $38,776	In state: $23,736 Out of state: $44,720
Average net price	$17,645	$15,228
Tuition	In state: $6,656 Out of state: $23,184	In state: $5,352 Out of state: $26,112
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,645 Meal plan: $7,957	Room/dormitory: $4,730 Meal plan: $6,324
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	80.0% Average amount $7,378	97.0% Average amount $6,340
Students receiving federal student loan	41.0% Average amount $4,834	44.0% Average amount $5,401
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $14,197	4.0% Average amount $13,104

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	9,566 Men 47.0% Women 53.0%	7,223 Men 41.9% Women 58.1%
Graduate students	610 Men 37.4% Women 62.6%	2,883 Men 37.0% Women 63.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	6.7%	N/A
International students	2.7%	1.9%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	3,755	2,886
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Washington California Oregon Hawaii Arkansas	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Business Social Sciences Health Professions Visual & Performing Arts	Health Professions Business Natural Resources and Conservation Biological and Biomedical Sciences Education
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	53.6%	47.7%
Dropout rate	44.0%	49.1%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $72,482 Year 3: $86,230 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,538 Year 2: $71,168 Year 3: $82,194 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,024 Year 2: $65,486 Year 3: $79,944 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $58,531 Year 2: $61,020 Year 3: $77,665 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,052 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $69,645 Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,580 Year 2: $56,979 Year 3: $69,564 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $55,151 Year 3: $62,577 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $61,531 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,008 Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $58,391 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,842 Year 2: $50,606 Year 3: $58,240	Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $114,396 Year 2: $113,016 Year 3: $118,046 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $49,692 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $71,476 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $62,746 Year 2: $58,673 Year 3: $65,366 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $65,302 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $67,886 Year 2: $62,707 Year 3: $64,764 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $55,287 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $61,703 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $51,687 Year 2: $52,433 Year 3: $59,094 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $44,412 Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $52,044 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,236 Year 2: $39,729 Year 3: $50,914 Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,604 Year 2: $45,852 Year 3: $48,041

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