Virginia Military Institute vs The Pennsylvania State University (PSU)

Virginia Military Institute (VMI) and The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) stand as two distinct institutions of higher learning, each offering unique opportunities and experiences to their students. VMI, a public military college, boasts a rigorous academic curriculum complemented by a strong emphasis on leadership and character development. Penn State, a public research university, offers a vast array of academic programs, world-class research facilities, and a vibrant student life. While both institutions share a commitment to academic excellence, they differ significantly in terms of acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover which university better aligns with your academic aspirations, personal preferences, and future goals.

	The Pennsylvania State University	Virginia Military Institute
Overview
Location	University Park, Pennsylvania	Lexington, Virginia
Campus setting	City: Small	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	87.0%	87.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	92.3%	63.9%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $65 Graduate: $65	$40
SAT range	1140 - 1360	1080 - 1300
ACT range	25 - 31	22 - 27
Students submitting SAT score	32.0%	29.0%
Students submitting ACT score	6.0%	12.0%
Total number of applicants	96,686	1,549
Total number of admissions given out	89,207	990
Admitted students who chose to enroll	16,049	461
Yield rate	18.0%	46.6%
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)	Required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $38,270 Out of state: $55,848	In state: $33,182 Out of state: $61,836
Average net price	$24,012	$18,100
Tuition	In state: $18,368 Out of state: $35,946	In state: $9,782 Out of state: $38,436
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,360 Meal plan: $5,618	Room/dormitory: $3,102 Meal plan: $7,260
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	51.0% Average amount $9,884	91.0% Average amount $10,832
Students receiving federal student loan	49.0% Average amount $5,305	59.0% Average amount $3,385
Students taking out private loans	13.0% Average amount $19,837	11.0% Average amount $22,604

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	73,476 Men 53.7% Women 46.3%	1,652 Men 86.2% Women 13.8%
Graduate students	15,438 Men 51.7% Women 48.3%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	34.1%	38.2%
International students	10.5%	1.7%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	20,547	1,751
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Maryland Virginia	Virginia Pennsylvania Maryland North Carolina New Jersey

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Engineering Computer and Information Science Health Professions Social Sciences	Engineering Social Sciences Psychology Biological and Biomedical Sciences History
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	10:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	72.3%	73.7%
Dropout rate	25.7%	4.4%
Transferred out	N/A	21.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Information Science/Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,295 Year 2: $120,549 Year 3: $125,527 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,798 Year 2: $95,930 Year 3: $120,289 Computer Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,190 Year 2: $97,959 Year 3: $113,544 Mining and Mineral Engineering (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $98,403 Year 3: $108,754 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,372 Year 2: $100,455 Year 3: $107,874 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $96,574 Year 2: $99,291 Year 3: $104,370 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $95,304 Year 2: $97,855 Year 3: $104,056 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $92,512 Year 2: $94,864 Year 3: $103,461 Management Information Systems and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $92,632 Year 3: $98,201 Nuclear Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $89,155 Year 3: $94,780	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,118 Year 2: $41,937 Year 3: $60,559 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,215 Year 2: $44,942 Year 3: $59,186 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,030 Year 2: $49,270 Year 3: $57,955 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,302 Year 2: $39,305 Year 3: $55,311 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,325 Year 2: $45,094 Year 3: $55,205 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,487 Year 2: $38,649 Year 3: $52,930 Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,025 Year 2: $39,909 Year 3: $52,845 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,712 Year 2: $41,007 Year 3: $43,814 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,367 Year 2: $64,493 Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,671 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: N/A

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Virginia Military Institute vs The Pennsylvania State University (PSU)

The Pennsylvania State University

Virginia Military Institute

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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