Western Michigan University (WMU) vs Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU)

Western Michigan University and Saginaw Valley State University, both esteemed institutions in Michigan, offer distinct educational experiences. Western Michigan, located in Kalamazoo, boasts a higher acceptance rate (80%) compared to Saginaw Valley's 75%. With a larger student body, Western Michigan offers a more diverse range of majors, including popular choices like Business, Engineering, and Health Professions. Saginaw Valley, situated in University Center, excels in programs such as Nursing, Education, and Criminal Justice. While Western Michigan's graduation rate stands at 60%, Saginaw Valley's is slightly lower at 55%. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details and discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Saginaw Valley State University	Western Michigan University
Overview
Location	University Center, Michigan	Kalamazoo, Michigan
Campus setting	Suburb: Midsize	City: Small
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	73.0%	77.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	77.8%	82.8%
Application fees		Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $50
SAT range	960 - 1170	1000 - 1220
ACT range	19 - 25	21 - 27
Students submitting SAT score	80.0%	37.0%
Students submitting ACT score	6.0%	7.0%
Total number of applicants	5,899	18,853
Total number of admissions given out	4,590	15,612
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,336	2,112
Yield rate	29.1%	13.5%
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)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $26,036 Out of state: $41,050	In state: $27,947 Out of state: $31,281
Average net price	$15,476	$19,749
Tuition	In state: $11,130 Out of state: $26,144	In state: $13,334 Out of state: $16,668
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,608 Meal plan: $4,150	$10,884
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	98.0% Average amount $7,607	95.0% Average amount $6,352
Students receiving federal student loan	54.0% Average amount $5,138	49.0% Average amount $5,188
Students taking out private loans	6.0% Average amount $9,204	10.0% Average amount $15,132

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	6,789 Men 35.6% Women 64.4%	14,587 Men 50.1% Women 49.9%
Graduate students	734 Men 21.1% Women 78.9%	3,679 Men 37.4% Women 62.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	23.8%
International students	3.2%	7.3%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Midsize	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	2,233	5,130
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Michigan Illinois Indiana Wisconsin Ohio

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Public Administration and Social Service Business Engineering	Health Professions Education Engineering Business Multidisciplinary Studies
Students to faculty ratio	16:1	16:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	42.5%	56.3%
Dropout rate	53.3%	14.6%
Transferred out	N/A	25.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,762 Year 2: $73,378 Year 3: $76,097 Computer Systems Analysis (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,415 Year 2: $64,990 Year 3: $71,386 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $59,169 Year 3: $70,201 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $61,282 Year 2: $64,990 Year 3: $66,489 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,511 Year 2: $61,688 Year 3: $63,045 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,063 Year 2: $56,776 Year 3: $62,740 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $60,104 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $40,641 Year 3: $55,381 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,943 Year 2: $44,468 Year 3: $53,829 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $50,863 Year 2: $48,682 Year 3: $53,438	Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $102,212 Year 2: $103,274 Year 3: $105,179 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $77,392 Year 2: $73,801 Year 3: $88,332 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $84,653 Year 3: $87,977 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,143 Year 2: $65,945 Year 3: $79,982 Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $69,346 Year 2: $70,456 Year 3: $77,922 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,069 Year 2: $73,562 Year 3: $77,263 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,557 Year 2: $70,776 Year 3: $75,447 Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,559 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $73,968 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,118 Year 2: $63,749 Year 3: $72,465 Engineering-Related Fields (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,803 Year 2: $59,576 Year 3: $69,288

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.