University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) vs UC Merced

Envision yourself pursuing higher education in either the vibrant heart of Houston or the scenic Central Valley of California. University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) and University of California-Merced (UC-Merced) offer distinct experiences for students seeking a diverse and enriching academic journey. While UHD boasts an open admissions policy, UC-Merced maintains a selective admissions process, resulting in acceptance rates of 100% and 63%, respectively. Explore the comparison table to delve into further details about these institutions, including popular majors like Business and Engineering at UHD and Social Sciences and Biological Sciences at UC-Merced, as well as student body demographics and graduation rates. Discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	University of California-Merced	University of Houston-Downtown
Overview
Location	Merced, California	Houston, Texas
Campus setting	Rural: Fringe	City: Large
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	79.0%	64.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	86.6%	94.8%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $120	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $35
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	27,793	6,148
Total number of admissions given out	24,068	5,831
Admitted students who chose to enroll	2,410	1,360
Yield rate	10.0%	23.3%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $28,870 Out of state: $58,624	In state: $25,782 Out of state: $35,598
Average net price	$11,586	$13,460
Tuition	In state: $11,442 Out of state: $41,196	In state: $6,252 Out of state: $16,068
Room & board	$18,901
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	92.0% Average amount $21,623	88.0% Average amount $7,490
Students receiving federal student loan	18.0% Average amount $4,470	14.0% Average amount $4,717
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $2,687	1.0% Average amount $16,077

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,321 Men 47.7% Women 52.3%	13,612 Men 36.4% Women 63.6%
Graduate students	772 Men 55.8% Women 44.2%	1,465 Men 39.2% Women 60.8%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	0.2%	0.6%
International students	8.7%	5.4%
Campus local/setting	Rural: Fringe	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	3,634	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Alaska Idaho Missouri Texas	Texas Georgia Iowa Louisiana Michigan

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Physical Science Social Sciences English Language and Literature Psychology	Business Multidisciplinary Studies Computer and Information Science Health Professions Communication and Journalism
Students to faculty ratio	19:1	19:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	71.6%	30.2%
Dropout rate	5.0%	22.4%
Transferred out	22.6%	39.5%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,675 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $68,164 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $55,936 Year 2: $51,392 Year 3: $67,761 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,771 Year 2: $43,000 Year 3: $57,642 Biomedical/Medical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,420 Year 2: $39,729 Year 3: $53,045 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,245 Year 2: $41,937 Year 3: $50,288 Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,755 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $49,047 Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,917 Year 2: $38,721 Year 3: $47,958 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,685 Year 2: $31,391 Year 3: $43,274 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,397 Year 2: $29,685 Year 3: $42,368 Cognitive Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,909 Year 2: $28,960 Year 3: $40,928	Criminal Justice and Corrections (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $56,980 Year 2: $71,015 Year 3: $78,852 Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,187 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $76,489 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,158 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $73,620 Civil Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,110 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $63,411 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,074 Year 2: $58,673 Year 3: $62,848 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $68,458 Year 2: $64,990 Year 3: $61,484 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,605 Year 2: $50,022 Year 3: $55,488 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,118 Year 2: $50,082 Year 3: $53,629 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,554 Year 2: $41,193 Year 3: $52,508 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,661 Year 2: $44,064 Year 3: $52,377

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