Syracuse University and Penn State University are the two premier and leading research universities in the US, providing quality education and excelling in academics, as well as other spheres. Every year many students from domestic as well as international spheres wish to get admitted to one of these universities to pursue their dream careers or courses. The students face a dilemma which may be better for them. So, here are some details of stating their pros and cons which may be taken into consideration while choosing the preferable university.
Location
Syracuse University is a private research institute located in Syracuse in New York and has a range of buildings within the campus-based on the Romanian architecture, most of them ranging from the nineteenth century to till date. Penn State University, on the other hand, is a public research university, located in Pennsylvania ,and its campus is spread over this area. It is one of the most prestigious schools that have emerged to date.
Academics
Both the colleges offer a variety of courses that a student can opt for. While Syracuse University is more well known for its relatively modern courses that require an innovative and research-oriented mindset, as well as programs that focus on creativity. To name a few, it offers courses related to Business Management, Journalism, Visual Arts, Social Studies, and many more. The sports section of this school deserves special attention as the Basketball section is very famous among the universities located here. In New York, it is one of the top-rated universities with marketing programs bagging the first position in some of the studies. Syracuse University provides nearly 600 academic programs across thirteen schools and colleges- 288 undergraduate programs, 244 graduate programs, 25 law programs, 14 certificate programs, and 5 executive programs. And the students have multiple options to choose their courses from.
Penn State University has ranked 19th in the World University Ranking, 2021, which already gives, us an idea of the quality of education and the facilities provided here. It is known for its management programs which can help entrepreneurs in their future goals. Moreover, Penn State is famous for its Science allied courses, be it Engineering, Computer Science, natural sciences as well as biological sciences mostly related to biomedical programs, health sciences, genetic studies, etc. It is also to be noted that social sciences mostly based on journalism, and marketing are also very well known. This university has about 160 majors, 200 minors, and a lot of undergraduate courses. Due to the vastness of the courses, this university has sixteen colleges that categorize these courses and courses, taught here. Some examples may be Dickinson Law, School of International Affairs, Nese School of Nursing, and many more.
Admission
Since both Syracuse University and Penn State University are very famous, they are very selective and always take great care in selecting the best students. Usually, the Penn State has an acceptance rate of around 50- 60% and Syracuse University has an acceptance rate of around 65-70%. So on a lighter note, the difficulty of getting admited into the into Penn State is greater than the former. The Penn State requires a GPA of 3.56-3.91 at the University Park and 3.06-3.65 for all other campuses, the SAT score is 1280-1450 and 1090-1300 respectively. The ACT requirements range between 29-33 and 23- 30 respectively. or Syracuse University, the GPA requirement is 3.67 and the SAT and ACT scores are on average 1275 and 28 respectively. Though the scores may vary during each academic session, the average hovers around the given scores. It is to be noted that both the universities are willing to admit those serious candidates who are eager to join them and should try to get a good score which will increase the chance of their getting into the colleges.
Tuition fee
At Syracuse University, the academic or attendance expenses are divided into direct and indirect expenses ,where the direct expense includes the tuition fees, accommodations, as well as meals, and the indirect expenses, include the transportation cost, books and notebooks, and personal ones. The direct expenses are around $33,358 per academic year and the average indirect expenses per academic year are about $53,838 without health insurance and the health insurance costs around $2,251. For the Online graduate program, the quarterly cost of attendance is about $ 17,808 and the Online semester cost of attendance is $16,046.
In Penn State University, there are separate costs, each for PA, non – PA and International Students where the cost is around $33,056-36,278, $50,634-53,856 and $52,134-55,326 respectively. This is for the University Park campus. For the Commonwealth Campus, the costs are $29,744-32,966, $39,758-42,980 and $41,258-44,480 respectively. The additional cost that is estimated for all the campuses is around $14,158-17,380 mostly due to rooms and meals as well as books, travel expenses, and other personal reasons. There is a provision for financial aid in both the universities and those who cannot afford to pay, can apply for the aid so that their costs get waived and they have to pay a lesser fee. At Penn State, to be eligible for aid, they have to submit FAFSA and make avail of the suitable scholarship. At Syracuse University, approximately 80% of the students opted for aid and students can register themselves for the financial aid category.
Conclusion
To sum up, Penn State University and Syracuse University both are very good in all aspects and have a great success rate, while students in the latter enjoy a more social life and have an active playful mind, the former has been consistent in keeping the research quality at par with the global institutions. Every university has pros and cons, but it is within the student’s control to judge what is suitable for them. Whether New York is costlier than Pennsylvania or the education quality is greater at Penn State or the individual is more outward-oriented and has a sporting mind, it is all left to the choice of students. It is advisable to regularly check the university websites as it keeps on updating every one day or the other.
