Carnegie Mellon vs NorthWestern

Carnegie Mellon University and Northwestern University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct academic experiences and opportunities to their students. Carnegie Mellon, renowned for its strength in technology and computer science, boasts a lower acceptance rate and a higher percentage of international students compared to Northwestern. On the other hand, Northwestern, known for its well-rounded liberal arts education, has a slightly higher graduation rate and a more diverse student body. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to delve into further details about these universities, including popular majors, student demographics, and financial aid options, to help you make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Carnegie Mellon University	Northwestern University
Overview
Location	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Evanston, Illinois
Campus setting	City: Large	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	97.0%	99.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	13.5%	7.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $95
SAT range	1480 - 1560	1470 - 1570
ACT range	33 - 35	34 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	48.0%	43.0%
Students submitting ACT score	22.0%	39.0%
Total number of applicants	32,896	47,636
Total number of admissions given out	4,453	3,321
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,896	2,086
Yield rate	42.6%	62.8%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$75,664	$83,838
Average net price	$37,450	$29,999
Tuition	$57,560	$60,276
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,614 Meal plan: $6,536	Room/dormitory: $11,271 Meal plan: $6,993
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	50.0% Average amount $39,421	57.0% Average amount $51,087
Students receiving federal student loan	37.0% Average amount $4,672	23.0% Average amount $4,625
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $29,079	2.0% Average amount $38,595

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	6,932 Men 50.2% Women 49.8%	8,847 Men 46.1% Women 53.9%
Graduate students	8,125 Men 62.3% Women 37.7%	14,562 Men 47.3% Women 52.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	85.0%	N/A
International students	40.0%	17.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	3,754	4,409
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Virginia	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Computer and Information Science Business Visual & Performing Arts Physical Science	Business Communication and Journalism Engineering Health Professions Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio	5:1	6:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	92.8%	95.2%
Dropout rate	3.5%	4.2%
Transferred out	2.8%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $161,723 Year 2: $160,116 Year 3: $201,541 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $139,390 Year 2: $133,383 Year 3: $150,136 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,615 Year 2: $107,758 Year 3: $132,201 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $116,935 Year 2: $114,223 Year 3: $129,112 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,283 Year 2: $120,549 Year 3: $122,667 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $95,295 Year 3: $112,628 Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $85,041 Year 2: $89,859 Year 3: $106,086 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,653 Year 2: $94,940 Year 3: $104,312 Statistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,636 Year 2: $88,506 Year 3: $103,853 Systems Science and Theory (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $82,123 Year 2: $84,393 Year 3: $103,805	Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $150,242 Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $221,242 Business/Commerce, General (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $216,176 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $187,194 Year 2: $170,971 Year 3: $206,288 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $120,709 Year 2: $189,565 Year 3: $194,961 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $162,478 Year 2: $163,561 Year 3: $177,652 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,200 Year 2: $157,779 Year 3: $159,304 Engineering, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $140,321 Year 2: $141,586 Year 3: $154,556 Medical Illustration and Informatics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $88,288 Year 2: $118,465 Year 3: $132,325 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,780 Year 2: $111,323 Year 3: $130,124 Community Organization and Advocacy (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $115,760 Year 2: $113,668 Year 3: $128,046

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Carnegie Mellon vs NorthWestern

Carnegie Mellon University

Northwestern University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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