University at Buffalo (UB) vs Virginia Tech

When it comes to higher education, University at Buffalo (UB) and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) stand out as two prominent institutions with distinct characteristics. UB, located in the vibrant city of Buffalo, New York, offers a diverse range of academic programs and a bustling urban campus experience. In contrast, Virginia Tech, situated in the scenic town of Blacksburg, Virginia, is renowned for its strong engineering and agricultural programs and its beautiful mountaintop campus. 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 our comprehensive comparison table to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	University at Buffalo	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Overview
Location	Buffalo, New York	Blacksburg, Virginia
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	83.0%	92.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	70.1%	56.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75
SAT range	1180 - 1360	1210 - 1410
ACT range	25 - 31	26 - 32
Students submitting SAT score	29.0%	83.0%
Students submitting ACT score	5.0%	35.0%
Total number of applicants	30,750	42,054
Total number of admissions given out	21,552	23,746
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,309	6,758
Yield rate	20.0%	28.5%
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: $30,240 Out of state: $48,160	In state: $30,104 Out of state: $49,787
Average net price	$17,954	$20,109
Tuition	In state: $7,070 Out of state: $24,990	In state: $11,750 Out of state: $30,829
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,952 Meal plan: $6,500	Room/dormitory: $5,890 Meal plan: $4,736
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	71.0% Average amount $8,810	58.0% Average amount $8,018
Students receiving federal student loan	45.0% Average amount $5,071	40.0% Average amount $5,316
Students taking out private loans	8.0% Average amount $13,892	9.0% Average amount $20,728

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	21,467 Men 54.3% Women 45.7%	29,760 Men 57.3% Women 42.7%
Graduate students	10,865 Men 47.5% Women 52.5%	7,519 Men 56.5% Women 43.5%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	3.2%	39.5%
International students	18.3%	9.9%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	7,711	9,471
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York New Jersey Pennsylvania Connecticut Florida	Virginia Maryland New Jersey North Carolina Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Engineering Computer and Information Science Education Social Sciences	Engineering Business Family and Consumer Sciences Computer and Information Science Natural Resources and Conservation
Students to faculty ratio	13:1	14:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	73.8%	86.6%
Dropout rate	8.7%	12.3%
Transferred out	16.4%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $140,469 Year 2: $159,761 Year 3: $146,042 Dentistry (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $70,533 Year 2: $67,772 Year 3: $132,503 Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $95,335 Year 2: $104,510 Year 3: $123,979 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,109 Year 2: $61,020 Year 3: $82,514 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,415 Year 2: $68,499 Year 3: $78,884 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,859 Year 2: $67,101 Year 3: $76,613 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,249 Year 2: $61,078 Year 3: $75,877 Civil Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $63,773 Year 2: $66,653 Year 3: $75,097 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,581 Year 2: $59,350 Year 3: $74,704 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,797 Year 2: $59,485 Year 3: $72,822	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $105,287 Year 2: $113,246 Year 3: $125,427 Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,383 Year 2: $96,691 Year 3: $106,931 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $82,448 Year 2: $88,678 Year 3: $96,747 Veterinary Medicine (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $76,172 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $93,580 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,104 Year 2: $78,488 Year 3: $90,164 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,370 Year 2: $75,518 Year 3: $87,658 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $81,573 Year 2: $91,211 Year 3: $84,990 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,460 Year 2: $73,635 Year 3: $83,712 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,805 Year 2: $73,272 Year 3: $82,738 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,610 Year 2: $70,680 Year 3: $81,822

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