UIU vs. Southwest Minnesota State University

Upper Iowa University vs. Southwest Minnesota State University comparison

	Upper Iowa University	Southwest Minnesota State University	College 3	College 4
	Remove	Remove	+Add	+Add
Overview	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
Location	Fayette, IA	Marshall, MN
Setting	Remote Rural	Rural Fringe
Enrollment	3,072	6,930
Type	Private 4 Year	Public 4 Year
National Ranking	#737	#948
Religious Affiliation	-	-	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	uiu.edu	smsu.edu
Team Colors

Costs	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
Tuition (In State)	$32,589	$8,840
Tuition (Out of State)	$32,589	$8,840
Room & Board	$9,644	$9,258
Avg Net Price	$24,563	$15,004
Avg Grant Aid	$25,788	$7,389
% Receiving Grant Aid	100%	94%

Admission	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
Admission Chances	Calculate	Calculate
Applied	1,405	1,558
Admitted	762	1,427
Acceptance Rate	54.2%	91.6%
Enrolled %	28.3%	22.8%
Avg High School GPA	3.34	3.21
Typical High School Grades	B+	B
Admissions Standards	Extremely Easy	Extremely Easy
Applicant Competition	Low
ACT Range	18/24	17/23
SAT Range	890/1050	935/1102
Submit Test Scores	Required to be considered for admission	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)
Application Deadline		Aug 18, 2025

Academics	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
Student to Faculty Ratio	13:1	15:1
Popular Majors	Business (40%) Human Services (17%) Social Sciences (13%) Psychology (10%) Education (5%)	Business (39%) Education (16%) Recreation, Leisure and Fitness Studies (8%) Communication (4%) Biology (4%)
Outcomes	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
Graduation Rate	45%	39%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$42,100	$41,200
Making Student Loan Payments	50%	66%
Median Student Loan Debt	$24,000	$21,678
Median Loan Payment	$248	$224

Diversity	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
% Men	41%	38%
% Women	59%	62%
Racial Diversity	Medium	Low
HBCU	No	No
% White	66%	80%
% Black	19%	5%
% Hispanic	5%	4%
% Native American	0%	0%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	2%	3%
% International	3%	5%
% Unknown Race	3%	2%

Students	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
% In-State	49%	74%
% Out-of-State	48%	20%
Campus	UIU	Southwest Minnesota State University
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	No
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	No	Yes
Daycare Facility	No	Yes
Learn More	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Southwest Minnesota State University is larger than than UIU based on total student enrollment (6,930 students vs. 3,072 students)

UIU vs. Southwest Minnesota State University Cost Comparison

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

• Upper Iowa University is 268.7% more expensive to attend than Southwest Minnesota State University for in-state tuition ($32,589.00 vs. $8,840.00)
• Out of state tuition is 268.7% higher at UIU than Southwest Minnesota State University ($32,589.00 vs. $8,840.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at Southwest Minnesota State University than UIU ($15,004 vs. $24,563)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at Southwest Minnesota State University are 4.2% lower than costs at Upper Iowa University ($9,258 vs. $9,644)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Upper Iowa University than Southwest Minnesota State University (100% vs. 94%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Upper Iowa University students is 249% larger than aid received Southwest Minnesota State University ($25,788 vs. $7,389)

UIU vs. Southwest Minnesota State University Admissions Difficulty Comparison

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

• The average SAT score at Southwest Minnesota State University (1008) is 78 points higher than at UIU (930)
• Incoming Southwest Minnesota State University students have a 2 point higher average ACT score (22) than students at UIU (20)
• Accepted freshman UIU students have a 0.13 point higher average high school GPA (3.34) than students at Southwest Minnesota State University (3.21)
• Southwest Minnesota State University has a higher acceptance rate (91.6%) than UIU (54.2%)

UIU vs. Southwest Minnesota State University Graduation Outcomes Comparison

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

• The graduation rate at UIU is higher than Southwest Minnesota State University (45% vs. 39%)
• Graduates from Upper Iowa University earn on average $900 more per year than Southwest Minnesota State University graduates after ten years. ($42,100 vs. $41,200)
• Southwest Minnesota State University students graduate with a $2,322 lower median federal student loan debt than UIU graduates. ($21,678 vs. $24,000)
• Southwest Minnesota State University graduates are paying $24 less per month on federal student loans than UIU graduates. ($224 vs. $248)
• More Southwest Minnesota State University graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former UIU students, three years after graduation. (66% vs. 50%)

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