Western Carolina University (WCU) vs The Citadel

Western Carolina University and Citadel Military College of South Carolina stand as distinct institutions of higher learning, each offering unique educational experiences. Western Carolina University, nestled in the picturesque mountains of Cullowhee, North Carolina, welcomes a diverse student body with an acceptance rate of 79%. Its popular majors include Nursing, Business Administration, and Psychology. Citadel Military College of South Carolina, located in the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina, offers a rigorous military-style education with an acceptance rate of 65%. Engineering, Business Administration, and Criminal Justice are among its sought-after majors. While both institutions boast impressive graduation rates, Western Carolina University's rate stands at 58%, while Citadel Military College of South Carolina's is slightly higher at 62%. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details and discover which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Citadel Military College of South Carolina	Western Carolina University
Overview
Location	Charleston, South Carolina	Cullowhee, North Carolina
Campus setting	City: Midsize	Town: Distant
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	86.0%	75.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	86.4%	79.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $40	Undergraduate: $65 Graduate: $65
SAT range	N/A	1060 - 1230
ACT range	N/A	19 - 25
Students submitting SAT score		12.0%
Students submitting ACT score		43.0%
Total number of applicants	2,470	12,308
Total number of admissions given out	2,134	9,775
Admitted students who chose to enroll	566	1,729
Yield rate	26.5%	17.7%
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: $48,551 Out of state: $71,807	In state: $19,349 Out of state: $23,349
Average net price	$19,473	$13,082
Tuition	In state: $8,356 Out of state: $30,857	In state: $1,000 Out of state: $5,000
Room & board	$7,593	Room/dormitory: $6,403 Meal plan: $5,029
Available payment plans		Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	79.0% Average amount $11,451	73.0% Average amount $5,772
Students receiving federal student loan	49.0% Average amount $5,200	56.0% Average amount $4,850
Students taking out private loans	17.0% Average amount $26,781	9.0% Average amount $9,396

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,718 Men 86.4% Women 13.6%	10,145 Men 43.6% Women 56.4%
Graduate students	975 Men 50.1% Women 49.9%	1,732 Men 32.1% Women 67.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	44.0%	17.7%
International students	1.1%	1.7%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	2,372	3,815
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	South Carolina Georgia North Carolina Florida New York	North Carolina South Carolina Georgia Florida Tennessee

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Engineering Education Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Psychology	Health Professions Education Business Public Administration and Social Service Engineering Technologies
Students to faculty ratio	11:1	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	73.1%	61.4%
Dropout rate	9.1%	10.2%
Transferred out	16.0%	27.5%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $74,909 Year 2: $82,123 Year 3: $97,617 Engineering-Related Fields (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $86,129 Year 3: $95,438 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,390 Year 2: $63,692 Year 3: $73,572 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,512 Year 2: $59,071 Year 3: $68,635 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,853 Year 2: $40,017 Year 3: $57,251 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,394 Year 2: $48,617 Year 3: $55,395 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,673 Year 2: $41,342 Year 3: $55,155 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,273 Year 2: $39,009 Year 3: $52,597 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,924 Year 2: $37,856 Year 3: $49,110 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $45,696 Year 3: $46,799	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,321 Year 2: $103,913 Year 3: $103,661 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,207 Year 2: $64,990 Year 3: $72,372 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,769 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $72,367 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $65,460 Year 2: $67,324 Year 3: $68,635 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,202 Year 2: $58,221 Year 3: $64,334 Engineering Technology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,173 Year 2: $54,996 Year 3: $63,171 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,798 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $61,637 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,571 Year 2: $55,512 Year 3: $59,030 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,835 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $58,930 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,362 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $57,003

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