USC Upstate vs Northern Kentucky University (NKU)

When it comes to higher education, University of South Carolina-Upstate and Northern Kentucky University stand out as two compelling options for prospective students. Both institutions offer a diverse range of academic programs, vibrant campus life, and opportunities for personal and professional growth. However, there are some key differences between the two universities that may influence your decision-making process. From acceptance rates and popular majors to student body demographics and graduation rates, our comprehensive comparison table provides a side-by-side analysis of these two esteemed institutions. Explore the data to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations, personal preferences, and future goals.

	Northern Kentucky University	University of South Carolina-Upstate
Overview
Location	Highland Heights, Kentucky	Spartanburg, South Carolina
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: 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	70.0%	61.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	80.3%	75.7%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $40	Undergraduate: $45 Graduate: $45
SAT range	983 - 1210	950 - 1150
ACT range	20 - 26	19 - 23
Students submitting SAT score	7.0%	26.0%
Students submitting ACT score	84.0%	19.0%
Total number of applicants	6,637	2,893
Total number of admissions given out	5,329	2,190
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,690	597
Yield rate	31.7%	27.3%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $28,010 Out of state: $38,066	In state: $28,648 Out of state: $39,610
Average net price	$7,443	$14,816
Tuition	In state: $10,008 Out of state: $20,064	In state: $11,208 Out of state: $22,170
Room & board	$11,454	Room/dormitory: $5,614 Meal plan: $3,714
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	99.0% Average amount $10,343	96.0% Average amount $8,974
Students receiving federal student loan	43.0% Average amount $4,988	62.0% Average amount $5,480
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $10,090	4.0% Average amount $8,248

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	10,814 Men 39.8% Women 60.2%	4,981 Men 32.7% Women 67.3%
Graduate students	5,165 Men 25.9% Women 74.1%	457 Men 13.6% Women 86.4%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	8.2%
International students	2.0%	1.2%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	1,376	1,055
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Ohio Indiana Florida Maryland	South Carolina Georgia North Carolina Florida Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Business Education Public Administration and Social Service Visual & Performing Arts	Health Professions Education Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	17:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	47.8%	47.4%
Dropout rate	49.3%	19.2%
Transferred out	N/A	31.9%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $98,497 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $92,665 Year 2: $90,245 Year 3: $95,400 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $74,690 Year 2: $101,406 Year 3: $91,600 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $86,069 Year 2: $81,333 Year 3: $79,768 Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,058 Year 2: $67,420 Year 3: $74,689 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,266 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $72,692 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,922 Year 2: $59,071 Year 3: $66,724 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $62,135 Year 2: $59,534 Year 3: $65,990 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,914 Year 2: $56,867 Year 3: $62,291 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $41,900 Year 2: $50,856 Year 3: $61,904	Engineering-Related Fields (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,614 Year 2: $59,124 Year 3: $70,562 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,719 Year 2: $57,512 Year 3: $60,107 Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,885 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $52,577 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,033 Year 2: $45,500 Year 3: $50,407 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,902 Year 2: $37,088 Year 3: $43,565 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $28,960 Year 3: $37,957 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,958 Year 2: $32,439 Year 3: $37,264 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,254 Year 2: $32,284 Year 3: $37,102 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,772 Year 3: $35,463 Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,350 Year 2: $23,649 Year 3: $33,671

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