UCSC vs. San Diego State vs. UCI

University of California Santa Cruz vs. San Diego State University vs. University of California Irvine comparison

	University of California Santa Cruz	San Diego State University	University of California Irvine	College 4
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Overview	UCSC	San Diego State	UCI
Location	Santa Cruz, CA	San Diego, CA	Irvine, CA
Setting	Small City	Large City	Rural Fringe
Enrollment	19,478	37,402	35,937
Type	Public 4 Year	Public 4 Year	Public 4 Year
National Ranking	#222	#337	#91
Religious Affiliation	-	-	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	ucsc.edu	sdsu.edu	uci.edu
Team Colors

Comparable Facts

• San Diego State University is larger than than UCSC based on total student enrollment (37,402 students vs. 19,478 students)

UCSC vs. San Diego State Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, UCSC or San Diego State?

• University of California Santa Cruz is 101.4% more expensive to attend than San Diego State for in-state tuition ($11,564.00 vs. $5,742.00)
• Out of state tuition is 136.3% higher at UCSC than San Diego State University ($41,636.00 vs. $17,622.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at San Diego State University than UCSC ($13,017 vs. $17,975)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at University of California Santa Cruz are 8.4% lower than costs at San Diego State University ($18,185 vs. $19,714)
• More students receive financial grant aid at University of California Santa Cruz than San Diego State University (68% vs. 43%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by University of California Santa Cruz students is 113.4% larger than aid received San Diego State University ($21,202 vs. $9,934)

UCSC vs. San Diego State Admissions Difficulty Comparison

Which college is harder to get into, UCSC or San Diego State? Average SAT and ACT scores plus acceptance rates offer good insight into the difficulty of admission between San Diego State or UCSC .

• The average SAT score at University of California Santa Cruz (1201) is 71 points higher than at San Diego State (1130)
• Incoming UCSC students have a 3 point higher average ACT score (28) than students at San Diego State (25)
• Accepted freshman San Diego State students have a 0.19 point higher average high school GPA (3.82) than students at UCSC (3.63)
• UCSC has a higher acceptance rate (46.9%) than San Diego State (39.3%)

UCSC vs. San Diego State Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, UCSC or San Diego State? Graduation rate, salary and amount of student loan debt are indicators of a college which offers better outcomes for its graduates. Compare the following outcomes facts between San Diego State and UCSC.

• The graduation rate at UCSC is higher than San Diego State University (73% vs. 66%)
• Graduates from San Diego State University earn on average $3,000 more per year than UCSC graduates after ten years. ($53,400 vs. $50,400)
• San Diego State University students graduate with a $4,610 lower median federal student loan debt than UCSC graduates. ($15,349 vs. $19,959)
• San Diego State graduates are paying $48 less per month on federal student loans than UCSC graduates. ($158 vs. $206)
• More UCSC graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former San Diego State students, three years after graduation. (74% vs. 65%)

Sources: U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov IPEDS and College Scorecard https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/