UC Santa Cruz vs University of Nevada-Reno (UNR)

Nestled in the heart of California's Silicon Valley, University of California-Santa Cruz (UCSC) and the University of Nevada-Reno (UNR) stand as two distinct beacons of higher education. While both institutions offer a wealth of opportunities, they differ in several key aspects. UCSC boasts a lower acceptance rate, indicating a more selective admissions process, while UNR offers a more open-door policy. In terms of academic offerings, UCSC excels in the arts and humanities, while UNR shines in engineering and nursing. UCSC's student body is more diverse, with a higher percentage of international students, while UNR's student population is predominantly local. Finally, UCSC has a slightly higher graduation rate, suggesting a stronger focus on student success. To help you make an informed decision about your academic journey, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting these differences and more. Dive in to discover which university aligns best with your aspirations and goals.

	University of California-Santa Cruz	University of Nevada-Reno
Overview
Location	Santa Cruz, California	Reno, Nevada
Campus setting	City: Small	City: Large
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	89.0%	78.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	58.6%	88.2%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $120	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $60
SAT range	N/A	1060 - 1270
ACT range	N/A	20 - 26
Students submitting SAT score		12.0%
Students submitting ACT score		60.0%
Total number of applicants	61,695	9,421
Total number of admissions given out	36,177	8,306
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,187	3,412
Yield rate	11.6%	41.1%
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: $36,107 Out of state: $65,861	In state: $26,796 Out of state: $42,888
Average net price	$19,615	$16,398
Tuition	In state: $11,442 Out of state: $41,196	In state: $7,470 Out of state: $23,562
Room & board	$17,429	Room/dormitory: $5,850 Meal plan: $5,792
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	57.0% Average amount $19,199	86.0% Average amount $7,232
Students receiving federal student loan	20.0% Average amount $4,717	29.0% Average amount $5,001
Students taking out private loans	9.0% Average amount $3,115	4.0% Average amount $12,013

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	17,864 Men 52.2% Women 47.8%	17,025 Men 47.1% Women 52.9%
Graduate students	1,977 Men 53.4% Women 46.6%	4,009 Men 39.3% Women 60.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	5.7%	26.1%
International students	8.0%	2.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	9,300	3,524
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Colorado Oregon Texas	Nevada California Hawaii Oregon Washington

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Physical Science Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Computer and Information Science	Health Professions Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Public Administration and Social Service Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	24:1	17:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	78.1%	62.7%
Dropout rate	15.6%	34.1%
Transferred out	5.1%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,207 Year 2: $79,150 Year 3: $93,848 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,040 Year 2: $63,530 Year 3: $85,557 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,378 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $82,012 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,725 Year 2: $60,185 Year 3: $70,114 Biomedical/Medical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,515 Year 2: $48,823 Year 3: $68,276 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,252 Year 2: $31,941 Year 3: $65,929 Economics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: $62,051 Business/Managerial Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,826 Year 2: $51,607 Year 3: $61,441 Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,511 Year 2: $54,894 Year 3: $57,162 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,243 Year 2: $36,938 Year 3: $54,748	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,016 Year 2: $104,192 Year 3: $106,685 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $79,284 Year 3: $89,037 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $79,780 Year 2: $82,440 Year 3: $86,482 Mining and Mineral Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $82,783 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,402 Year 2: $67,473 Year 3: $78,990 Civil Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $60,203 Year 2: $66,169 Year 3: $77,729 Psychology, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $57,770 Year 3: $75,701 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,757 Year 2: $69,161 Year 3: $74,927 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,629 Year 2: $67,324 Year 3: $73,298 Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $56,591 Year 2: $57,995 Year 3: $71,617

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