Quad

Head-to-head

Appalachian State
U. Kentucky

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    U. Kentucky's grants cover 29% of its full price on average, vs. 14% at Appalachian State

    Aid generosity
  2. 2

    Appalachian State costs about $8.2K less per year on average than U. Kentucky ($21,851 vs. $30,092, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  3. 3

    U. Kentucky grads earn $7.2K more ten years out than Appalachian State's ($59,025 vs. $51,836)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  4. 4

    Appalachian State graduates 7 pts more of its students than U. Kentucky (75% vs. 68%)

    Graduation rate
  5. 5

    U. Kentucky's yield is 4 pts higher than Appalachian State's

    Yield rate
  6. 6

    Appalachian State has 4 pts more Pell recipients than U. Kentucky (26% vs. 23%)

    Pell Grant recipients

The shape of each school

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

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Who's hardest to get into

Appalachian State admits 90%, U. Kentucky 94%; U. Kentucky's yield is higher, at 22%.

Acceptance rate
Appalachian State90%
U. Kentucky94%
Quad's selectivity
  • Appalachian StateAccessible
  • U. KentuckyOpen
SAT middle 50%Axis 900–1600
Appalachian State
1120–1280
U. Kentucky
1058–1270
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • Appalachian StateGPA, school record, and prep program required
  • U. KentuckyRigor and GPA very important45%

Who's on each campus

U. Kentucky is a bit larger than Appalachian State (24,763 vs. 19,444 undergrads); Appalachian State has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Appalachian State19.4K
U. Kentucky24.8K
Pell Grant share
Appalachian State26%
U. Kentucky23%

Majors and faculty

Psychology leads at Appalachian State, and Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse at U. Kentucky; Appalachian State has 16 students per faculty member to U. Kentucky's 18.

Students per faculty member
Appalachian State16 to 1
U. Kentucky18 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • Appalachian StatePsychology, General9%
  • U. KentuckyRegistered Nursing/Registered Nurse7%

What each costs

Appalachian State costs about $8.2K less a year than U. Kentucky on average; U. Kentucky's grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Appalachian State$21.9K
U. Kentucky$30.1K
Aid generosity
Appalachian State14%
U. Kentucky29%

What each pays off

U. Kentucky's former students earn more, a median $59K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 60% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Appalachian State$51.8K
U. Kentucky$59K
Graduation rate
Appalachian State75%
U. Kentucky68%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got less selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • Appalachian StateGrowing+82%
  • U. KentuckyGrowing+52%
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 2018;University of Kentucky (Fall 2025), Fall 2025;University of Kentucky Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024About 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