Quad

Head-to-head

Northern Arizona
Washington State

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    Washington State grads earn $14.5K more ten years out than Northern Arizona's ($68,905 vs. $54,384)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  2. 2

    Northern Arizona's grants cover 39% of its full price on average, vs. 27% at Washington State

    Aid generosity
  3. 3

    Washington State graduates 6 pts more of its students than Northern Arizona (66% vs. 60%)

    Graduation rate
  4. 4

    Northern Arizona costs about $4K less per year on average than Washington State ($20,159 vs. $24,199, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  5. 5

    Northern Arizona has 5 pts more first-gen students than Washington State (39% vs. 34%)

    First-generation students
  6. 6

    Washington State's yield is 4 pts higher than Northern Arizona's

    Yield rate

The shape of each school

Each axis is a national rank among 4-year colleges; further out = more of it.

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Hollow dots at the center mean that measure isn't reported.

Who's hardest to get into

Washington State admits 87%, Northern Arizona 90%; Washington State's yield is higher, at 20%.

Acceptance rate
Northern Arizona90%
Washington State87%
Quad's selectivity
  • Northern ArizonaOpen
  • Washington StateAccessible
SAT middle 50%
Northern ArizonaTest-blind
Washington StateTest-blind
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • Northern ArizonaGPA and school record required
  • Washington StateGPA, school record, and prep program required

Who's on each campus

Northern Arizona and Washington State are about the same size; Northern Arizona has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Northern Arizona22.9K
Washington State21.1K
Pell Grant share
Northern Arizona31%
Washington State27%

Majors and faculty

Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse leads at Northern Arizona, and Psychology at Washington State.

Students per faculty member
Northern Arizona19 to 1
Washington State15 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • Northern ArizonaRegistered Nursing/Registered Nurse9%
  • Washington StatePsychology, General8%

What each costs

Northern Arizona costs about $4K less a year than Washington State on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Northern Arizona$20.2K
Washington State$24.2K
Aid generosity
Northern Arizona39%
Washington State27%

What each pays off

Washington State's former students earn more, a median $68.9K ten years after enrolling; both graduate at least 60% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Northern Arizona$54.4K
Washington State$68.9K
Graduation rate
Northern Arizona60%
Washington State66%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got less selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • Northern ArizonaGrowing+14%
  • Washington StateGrowingsince fall 2015+29%
All the numbersEvery figure for these colleges in one table, with differences highlighted.
Sources for this comparisonEvery dataset and year behind the numbers in this comparison; tap any ⓘ for one number's source

Sources:IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey, 2023–24;IPEDS Student Financial Aid survey, 2023–24;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part D), Fall 2024;IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2024–25 graduates;College Scorecard, 2023–24;IPEDS Graduation Rates survey (Pell Grant and subsidized loan recipients), Entered fall 2018About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why