Quad

Head-to-head

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    Carnegie Mellon grads earn $28.7K more ten years out than Washington University in St Louis's ($114,862 vs. $86,182)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  2. 2

    Washington University in St Louis's grants cover 36% of its full price on average, vs. 30% at Carnegie Mellon

    Aid generosity
  3. 3

    Washington University in St Louis costs about $2.7K less per year on average than Carnegie Mellon ($56,263 vs. $58,996, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  4. 4

    Washington University in St Louis graduates 3 pts more of its students than Carnegie Mellon (93% vs. 90%)

    Graduation rate
  5. 5

    Carnegie Mellon is more diverse (index 0.78 vs. 0.76)

    Diversity index
  6. 6

    Washington University in St Louis has 2 pts more Pell recipients than Carnegie Mellon (18% vs. 16%)

    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

Carnegie Mellon admits 11%, Washington University in St Louis 12%; both have the same yield, 47%.

Acceptance rate
Carnegie Mellon11%
Washington University in St Louis12%
Quad's selectivity
  • Carnegie MellonUltra selective
  • Washington University in St LouisHighly selective
SAT middle 50%Axis 1400–1600
Carnegie Mellon
1500–1560
Washington University in St Louis
1500–1570
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • Carnegie MellonRigor, GPA, and rank very important86%
  • Washington University in St LouisRigor, GPA, rank, and tests very importantweighted GPAs

Who's on each campus

Carnegie Mellon and Washington University in St Louis are about the same size; Washington University in St Louis has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Carnegie Mellon7.3K
Washington University in St Louis7.9K
Pell Grant share
Carnegie Mellon16%
Washington University in St Louis18%

Majors and faculty

Computer Science leads at both; Carnegie Mellon has 5 students per faculty member to Washington University in St Louis's 7.

Students per faculty member
Carnegie Mellon5 to 1
Washington University in St Louis7 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • Carnegie MellonComputer Science15%
  • Washington University in St LouisComputer Science7%

What each costs

Washington University in St Louis costs about $2.7K less a year than Carnegie Mellon on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Carnegie Mellon$59K
Washington University in St Louis$56.3K
Aid generosity
Carnegie Mellon30%
Washington University in St Louis36%

What each pays off

Carnegie Mellon's former students earn more, a median $114.9K ten years after enrolling; both graduate at least 90% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Carnegie Mellon$114.9K
Washington University in St Louis$86.2K
Graduation rate
Carnegie Mellon90%
Washington University in St Louis93%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got more selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • Carnegie MellonGrowing+71%
  • Washington University in St LouisGrowing+12%
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

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