Berkeley vs Florida State

Nestled in the vibrant city of Berkeley, California, and the dynamic capital of Florida, Tallahassee, University of California-Berkeley and Florida State University stand as prominent institutions of higher learning. While both universities share a commitment to academic excellence, they offer distinct experiences shaped by their unique locations, academic strengths, and student demographics. With acceptance rates of 17% and 47%, respectively, these universities cater to different levels of competitiveness. UC Berkeley boasts a diverse student body, with 40% of undergraduates identifying as Asian, 24% as White, and 15% as Hispanic/Latino. FSU, on the other hand, has a more evenly distributed student population, with 49% White, 20% Black or African American, and 17% Hispanic/Latino undergraduates. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details about these universities, including popular majors, graduation rates, and additional factors that may influence your decision in choosing the ideal fit

	Florida State University	University of California-Berkeley
Overview
Location	Tallahassee, Florida	Berkeley, California
Campus setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
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	94.0%	96.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	37.1%	14.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $30 Graduate: $30	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $120
SAT range	1180 - 1340	N/A
ACT range	26 - 30	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	65.0%
Students submitting ACT score	36.0%
Total number of applicants	65,235	112,843
Total number of admissions given out	24,183	16,295
Admitted students who chose to enroll	7,619	6,931
Yield rate	31.5%	42.5%
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: $23,476 Out of state: $36,606	In state: $37,920 Out of state: $67,674
Average net price	$12,684	$17,652
Tuition	In state: $4,022 Out of state: $16,540	In state: $11,442 Out of state: $41,196
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,020 Meal plan: $4,856	$20,236
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	94.0% Average amount $10,620	52.0% Average amount $21,406
Students receiving federal student loan	19.0% Average amount $4,996	15.0% Average amount $4,586
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $13,430	6.0% Average amount $7,122

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	33,593 Men 42.9% Women 57.1%	31,814 Men 45.4% Women 54.6%
Graduate students	11,537 Men 38.4% Women 61.6%	13,222 Men 51.7% Women 48.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	15.7%	16.9%
International students	4.2%	18.0%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	6,709	9,630
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Florida Georgia New Jersey New York Illinois	California New Jersey Texas Virginia New York

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Business Education Visual & Performing Arts Legal Profession	Engineering Business Computer and Information Science Legal Profession Health Professions
Students to faculty ratio	22:1	20:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	83.2%	92.8%
Dropout rate	10.9%	6.3%
Transferred out	5.3%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $86,926 Year 2: $92,632 Year 3: $102,429 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,442 Year 2: $71,015 Year 3: $89,448 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,610 Year 2: $68,305 Year 3: $78,263 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,971 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $78,057 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $84,179 Year 2: $83,177 Year 3: $77,718 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $78,794 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $77,527 Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,567 Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: $75,845 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,881 Year 2: $68,918 Year 3: $74,476 Chemistry (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $74,364 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $63,216 Year 2: $60,325 Year 3: $72,686	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $171,936 Year 3: $191,597 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $122,038 Year 3: $167,052 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $125,250 Year 2: $125,388 Year 3: $161,399 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $126,367 Year 2: $128,868 Year 3: $160,666 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $160,390 Year 2: $142,470 Year 3: $143,984 Information Science/Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $119,358 Year 3: $143,516 Chemistry (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $107,442 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $112,973 Optometry (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $74,750 Year 2: $91,363 Year 3: $104,601 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $95,600 Year 2: $85,760 Year 3: $103,738 Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,282 Year 2: $65,387 Year 3: $102,543

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