Widener vs Samford

Widener University and Samford University, two distinct institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to their students. Widener, a private university in Chester, Pennsylvania, boasts a diverse student body and a strong focus on experiential learning, while Samford, a private Christian university in Birmingham, Alabama, emphasizes its faith-based mission and offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs. With acceptance rates of 75% and 82%, respectively, both universities welcome a substantial number of applicants each year. While Widener's popular majors include Business, Engineering, and Nursing, Samford's strengths lie in areas such as Business, Education, and Health Sciences. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details about these universities, including student body demographics, graduation rates, and additional factors that may influence your decision in choosing the ideal academic environment for your educational journey.

	Samford University	Widener University
Overview
Location	Birmingham, Alabama	Chester, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	4-1-4	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	89.0%	85.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Baptist

Admission
Acceptance rate	83.9%	84.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $35	$35
SAT range	1100 - 1290	1080 - 1275
ACT range	23 - 29	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	22.0%	28.0%
Students submitting ACT score	66.0%
Total number of applicants	4,217	5,719
Total number of admissions given out	3,537	4,834
Admitted students who chose to enroll	920	608
Yield rate	26.0%	12.6%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$53,100	$61,748
Average net price	$31,871	$25,343
Tuition	$34,410	$48,724
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $6,150 Meal plan: $5,110	Room/dormitory: $7,748 Meal plan: $7,060
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	99.0% Average amount $19,443	100.0% Average amount $32,036
Students receiving federal student loan	31.0% Average amount $5,320	75.0% Average amount $5,440
Students taking out private loans	6.0% Average amount $19,317	24.0% Average amount $12,154

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,607 Men 33.4% Women 66.6%	2,766 Men 41.9% Women 58.1%
Graduate students	2,151 Men 32.3% Women 67.7%	3,109 Men 28.1% Women 71.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	73.0%	40.5%
International students	0.8%	2.0%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	2,375	1,400
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Alabama Georgia Tennessee Texas Florida	Pennsylvania New Jersey Maryland Delaware New York

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Legal Profession Business Education Family and Consumer Sciences	Health Professions Legal Profession Public Administration and Social Service Business Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	78.9%	68.4%
Dropout rate	20.9%	7.7%
Transferred out	N/A	23.5%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $109,542 Year 2: $120,880 Year 3: $122,995 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,811 Year 2: $99,380 Year 3: $104,909 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $86,528 Year 2: $91,363 Year 3: $88,884 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,304 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $67,171 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $56,217 Year 2: $59,124 Year 3: $64,364 Law (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $47,785 Year 2: $48,667 Year 3: $61,547 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $52,967 Year 2: $54,851 Year 3: $57,875 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,355 Year 2: $54,948 Year 3: $54,480 Theological and Ministerial Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $37,947 Year 2: $39,585 Year 3: $46,442 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $44,337 Year 2: $43,638 Year 3: $46,369	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,072 Year 2: $69,023 Year 3: $78,834 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $70,872 Year 2: $72,274 Year 3: $77,715 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,994 Year 2: $67,660 Year 3: $74,855 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $71,854 Year 3: $74,433 Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $49,168 Year 2: $50,606 Year 3: $72,346 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,959 Year 2: $63,275 Year 3: $70,157 Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,088 Year 2: $60,320 Year 3: $69,444 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $50,960 Year 2: $55,632 Year 3: $65,158 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,724 Year 2: $38,829 Year 3: $63,971 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,130 Year 2: $59,640 Year 3: $63,186

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Widener vs Samford

Samford University

Widener University

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