Southwest Minnesota State University vs. NSU

Southwest Minnesota State University vs. Northern State University comparison

	Southwest Minnesota State University	Northern State University	College 3	College 4
	Remove	Remove	+Add	+Add
Overview	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
Location	Marshall, MN	Aberdeen, SD
Setting	Rural Fringe	Remote Town
Enrollment	7,324	3,521
Type	Public 4 Year	Public 4 Year
National Ranking	#910	#871
Religious Affiliation	-	-	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	smsu.edu	northern.edu
Team Colors

Costs	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
Tuition (In State)	$8,840	$7,616
Tuition (Out of State)	$8,840	$10,718
Room & Board	$10,666	$10,300
Avg Net Price	$14,839	$16,873
Avg Grant Aid	$7,455	$5,565
% Receiving Grant Aid	91%	93%

Admission	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
Admission Chances	Calculate	Calculate
Applied	2,630	1,082
Admitted	1,813	1,004
Acceptance Rate	68.9%	92.8%
Enrolled %	20.3%	31.8%
Avg High School GPA	3.21	3.37
Typical High School Grades	B	B+
Admissions Standards	Extremely Easy	Very Easy
Applicant Competition	Low
ACT Range	17/23	18/24
SAT Range	935/1102	800/1150
Submit Test Scores	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)
Application Deadline	Aug 18, 2026

Academics	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
Student to Faculty Ratio	16:1	17:1
Popular Majors	Business (39%) Education (16%) Recreation, Leisure and Fitness Studies (8%) Communication (4%) Biology (4%)	Business (35%) Education (20%) Social Sciences (13%) Recreation, Leisure and Fitness Studies (6%) Biology (4%)
Outcomes	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
Graduation Rate	39%	42%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$41,200	$37,400
Making Student Loan Payments	66%	63%
Median Student Loan Debt	$21,678	$24,399
Median Loan Payment	$224	$252

Diversity	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
% Men	2%	4%
% Women	4%	13%
Racial Diversity	Low	Very Low
HBCU	No	No
% White	80%	83%
% Black	5%	2%
% Hispanic	4%	4%
% Native American	0%	3%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	3%	2%
% International	5%	4%
% Unknown Race	2%	0%

Students	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
% In-State	74%	72%
% Out-of-State	20%	28%
Campus	Southwest Minnesota State University	NSU
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	No
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	Yes	Yes
Daycare Facility	Yes	Yes
Learn More	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Southwest Minnesota State University is larger than than NSU based on total student enrollment (7,324 students vs. 3,521 students)

Southwest Minnesota State University vs. NSU Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, Southwest Minnesota State University or NSU?

• Southwest Minnesota State University is 16.1% more expensive to attend than NSU for in-state tuition ($8,840.00 vs. $7,616.00)
• Out of state tuition is 21.2% higher at NSU than Southwest Minnesota State University ($10,718.00 vs. $8,840.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at Southwest Minnesota State University than NSU ($14,839 vs. $16,873)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at Northern State University are 3.6% lower than costs at Southwest Minnesota State University ($10,300 vs. $10,666)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Northern State University than Southwest Minnesota State University (93% vs. 91%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Southwest Minnesota State University students is 34% larger than aid received Northern State University ($7,455 vs. $5,565)

Southwest Minnesota State University vs. NSU Admissions Difficulty Comparison

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

• The average SAT score at Northern State University (1024) is 16 points higher than at Southwest Minnesota State University (1008)
• Incoming Southwest Minnesota State University students have at the same average ACT score (22) as students at NSU (22)
• Accepted freshman NSU students have a 0.16 point higher average high school GPA (3.37) than students at Southwest Minnesota State University (3.21)
• NSU has a higher acceptance rate (92.8%) than Southwest Minnesota State University (68.9%)

Southwest Minnesota State University vs. NSU Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, Southwest Minnesota State University or NSU? 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 NSU and Southwest Minnesota State University.

• The graduation rate at NSU is higher than Southwest Minnesota State University (42% vs. 39%)
• Graduates from Southwest Minnesota State University earn on average $3,800 more per year than NSU graduates after ten years. ($41,200 vs. $37,400)
• Southwest Minnesota State University students graduate with a $2,721 lower median federal student loan debt than NSU graduates. ($21,678 vs. $24,399)
• Southwest Minnesota State University graduates are paying $28 less per month on federal student loans than NSU graduates. ($224 vs. $252)
• More Southwest Minnesota State University graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former NSU students, three years after graduation. (66% vs. 63%)

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