UC San Diego vs SUNY Albany

Envision yourself immersed in the vibrant culture of San Diego or the historic charm of Albany, New York. University of California-San Diego (UCSD) and SUNY at Albany (SUNYA) offer distinct experiences, each with its own strengths and characteristics. While UCSD boasts a lower acceptance rate and higher graduation rate, SUNYA offers a more diverse student body and a wider range of undergraduate programs. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to delve into the details of these two esteemed institutions, considering factors such as acceptance rates, popular majors, student demographics, and graduation outcomes. Discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences, setting the stage for a fulfilling and transformative college journey.

	SUNY at Albany	University of California-San Diego
Overview
Location	Albany, New York	La Jolla, California
Campus setting	City: Small	City: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	82.0%	95.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	68.0%	34.2%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $120
SAT range	1090 - 1280	N/A
ACT range	22 - 29	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	15.0%
Students submitting ACT score	2.0%
Total number of applicants	21,265	118,386
Total number of admissions given out	14,458	40,493
Admitted students who chose to enroll	3,030	7,544
Yield rate	21.0%	18.6%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	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: $26,578 Out of state: $44,418	In state: $35,116 Out of state: $64,870
Average net price	$17,350	$15,632
Tuition	In state: $7,070 Out of state: $24,910	In state: $11,442 Out of state: $41,196
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,558 Meal plan: $5,495	$16,145
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	84.0% Average amount $10,460	48.0% Average amount $18,083
Students receiving federal student loan	54.0% Average amount $5,299	21.0% Average amount $4,545
Students taking out private loans	8.0% Average amount $13,629	7.0% Average amount $4,851

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	12,654 Men 46.4% Women 53.6%	33,343 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%
Graduate students	4,421 Men 35.0% Women 65.0%	8,542 Men 57.6% Women 42.4%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	4.4%	16.6%
International students	6.6%	21.3%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	6,867	17,765
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 Maryland	California Washington Texas New York Illinois

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Business Public Administration and Social Service Health Professions Social Sciences	Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Computer and Information Science Health Professions Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	18:1	19:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	66.3%	89.4%
Dropout rate	8.5%	9.7%
Transferred out	24.4%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Taxation (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,203 Year 2: $74,307 Year 3: $95,473 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $63,947 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $92,782 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $62,191 Year 2: $60,256 Year 3: $75,996 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,841 Year 2: $49,962 Year 3: $69,785 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,012 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $63,462 Public Health (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,175 Year 2: $49,270 Year 3: $61,387 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,902 Year 2: $40,510 Year 3: $58,543 Curriculum and Instruction (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,701 Year 2: $52,733 Year 3: $55,488 Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $43,798 Year 3: $52,904 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,404 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $52,601	Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $127,768 Year 2: $162,463 Year 3: $194,475 Computer Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $122,641 Year 2: $127,993 Year 3: $153,118 Physics (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $124,326 Engineering, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,445 Year 2: $113,668 Year 3: $123,569 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,196 Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $113,628 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $112,603 Year 2: $101,406 Year 3: $109,783 Education, General (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $108,034 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $87,738 Year 2: $86,972 Year 3: $105,245 Biomedical/Medical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $78,610 Year 2: $75,706 Year 3: $102,296 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,476 Year 2: $79,688 Year 3: $99,630

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