University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (UWEC) vs CWU-Ellensburg

Envision yourself pursuing higher education in either the picturesque Chippewa Valley of Wisconsin or the vibrant Yakima Valley of Washington. University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Central Washington University, both public institutions with rich histories, offer distinct experiences for their student bodies. While UW-Eau Claire boasts a higher acceptance rate and a larger student population, CWU offers a more diverse student body and a slightly higher graduation rate. Dive into our comprehensive comparison table to explore the nuances of each university, including popular majors, tuition fees, and student life, to determine which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Central Washington University	University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
Overview
Location	Ellensburg, Washington	Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
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	69.0%	78.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.4%	77.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $25 Graduate: $56
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	21 - 26
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score		63.0%
Total number of applicants	10,767	9,420
Total number of admissions given out	9,523	7,297
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,371	2,253
Yield rate	14.4%	30.9%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,248 Out of state: $38,776	In state: $21,212 Out of state: $29,487
Average net price	$17,645	$15,713
Tuition	In state: $6,656 Out of state: $23,184	In state: $7,361 Out of state: $15,636
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,645 Meal plan: $7,957	Room/dormitory: $5,170 Meal plan: $3,180
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	80.0% Average amount $7,378	68.0% Average amount $3,571
Students receiving federal student loan	41.0% Average amount $4,834	50.0% Average amount $4,893
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $14,197	14.0% Average amount $10,302

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	9,566 Men 47.0% Women 53.0%	9,869 Men 38.7% Women 61.3%
Graduate students	610 Men 37.4% Women 62.6%	700 Men 44.4% Women 55.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Very Low
Out-of-state students	6.7%	37.8%
International students	2.7%	2.0%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	3,755	3,997
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Washington California Oregon Hawaii Arkansas	Wisconsin Minnesota Illinois Iowa Florida

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Business Social Sciences Health Professions Visual & Performing Arts	Health Professions Education Business Foreign Languages and Literatures Public Administration and Social Service
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	20:1
Institutional accreditation	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	53.6%	68.0%
Dropout rate	44.0%	31.0%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $72,482 Year 3: $86,230 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,538 Year 2: $71,168 Year 3: $82,194 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,024 Year 2: $65,486 Year 3: $79,944 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $58,531 Year 2: $61,020 Year 3: $77,665 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,052 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $69,645 Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,580 Year 2: $56,979 Year 3: $69,564 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $55,151 Year 3: $62,577 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $61,531 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,008 Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $58,391 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,842 Year 2: $50,606 Year 3: $58,240	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $112,967 Year 2: $113,187 Year 3: $117,029 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $87,679 Year 2: $85,206 Year 3: $85,974 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,957 Year 2: $69,867 Year 3: $79,199 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,259 Year 2: $61,350 Year 3: $67,416 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $55,481 Year 2: $58,796 Year 3: $66,353 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,517 Year 2: $62,012 Year 3: $63,910 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $55,270 Year 2: $54,359 Year 3: $60,286 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,707 Year 2: $53,045 Year 3: $57,099 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,583 Year 2: $45,435 Year 3: $53,917 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,825 Year 2: $41,565 Year 3: $53,128

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