UMass Lowell vs NorthWestern

When it comes to higher education, University of Massachusetts-Lowell and Northwestern University stand out as two distinct institutions with unique offerings. UMass-Lowell, a public research university, boasts an acceptance rate of 79%, making it more accessible to a wider range of students. In contrast, Northwestern, a private research university, has a highly selective admissions process, with an acceptance rate of just 9%. Both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors at UMass-Lowell including Business, Engineering, and Health Sciences, while Northwestern is known for its strengths in Economics, Engineering, and Communication. While UMass-Lowell's student body is predominantly made up of Massachusetts residents, Northwestern attracts a more diverse student population from across the country and around the world. With a graduation rate of 68%, UMass-Lowell ensures that its students are well-prepared for their future careers, while Northwestern's impressive 91% graduation rate reflects its

	Northwestern University	University of Massachusetts-Lowell
Overview
Location	Evanston, Illinois	Lowell, Massachusetts
Campus setting	City: Small	Suburb: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Public
Calendar system	Quarter	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	99.0%	82.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	7.0%	84.6%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $95	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $50
SAT range	1470 - 1570	1170 - 1340
ACT range	34 - 35	25 - 32
Students submitting SAT score	43.0%	26.0%
Students submitting ACT score	39.0%	2.0%
Total number of applicants	47,636	12,493
Total number of admissions given out	3,321	10,565
Admitted students who chose to enroll	2,086	1,907
Yield rate	62.8%	18.1%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$83,838	In state: $24,672 Out of state: $42,598
Average net price	$29,999	$13,227
Tuition	$60,276	In state: $15,078 Out of state: $33,004
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $11,271 Meal plan: $6,993	Room/dormitory: $8,500 Meal plan: $5,070
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	57.0% Average amount $51,087	78.0% Average amount $10,449
Students receiving federal student loan	23.0% Average amount $4,625	59.0% Average amount $5,148
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $38,595	5.0% Average amount $10,989

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,847 Men 46.1% Women 53.9%	12,884 Men 58.6% Women 41.4%
Graduate students	14,562 Men 47.3% Women 52.7%	4,713 Men 53.7% Women 46.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	17.8%	5.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	4,409	4,787
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Mississippi New Hampshire New York New Jersey Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Communication and Journalism Engineering Health Professions Legal Profession	Business Engineering Health Professions Computer and Information Science Law Enforcement and Firefighting
Students to faculty ratio	6:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	95.2%	69.0%
Dropout rate	4.2%	28.0%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $150,242 Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $221,242 Business/Commerce, General (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $216,176 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $187,194 Year 2: $170,971 Year 3: $206,288 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $120,709 Year 2: $189,565 Year 3: $194,961 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $162,478 Year 2: $163,561 Year 3: $177,652 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,200 Year 2: $157,779 Year 3: $159,304 Engineering, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $140,321 Year 2: $141,586 Year 3: $154,556 Medical Illustration and Informatics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $88,288 Year 2: $118,465 Year 3: $132,325 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,780 Year 2: $111,323 Year 3: $130,124 Community Organization and Advocacy (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $115,760 Year 2: $113,668 Year 3: $128,046	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,995 Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: $92,580 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: $90,960 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $81,072 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $89,338 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $81,208 Year 2: $71,854 Year 3: $88,920 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,889 Year 2: $78,612 Year 3: $88,135 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,760 Year 2: $63,501 Year 3: $77,826 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,707 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $77,121 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,655 Year 2: $66,989 Year 3: $74,462 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $67,655 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $73,578 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,402 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $73,430

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