Quad

Head-to-head

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    Purdue costs about $9.5K less per year on average than Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State ($30,537 vs. $40,019, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  2. 2

    Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State grads earn $9.3K more ten years out than Purdue's ($81,698 vs. $72,424)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  3. 3

    Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State graduates 9 pts more of its students than Purdue (87% vs. 78%)

    Graduation rate
  4. 4

    Purdue is a bit larger (44,503 vs. 30,923)

    Undergrads
  5. 5

    Purdue admits 43% vs. 55% at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State

    Acceptance rate
  6. 6

    Purdue is more diverse (index 0.66 vs. 0.63)

    Diversity index

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

Purdue admits 43%, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State 55%; both have the same yield, 25%.

Acceptance rate
Purdue43%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State55%
Quad's selectivity
  • PurdueVery selective
  • Virginia Polytechnic Institute and StateVery selective
SAT middle 50%Axis 1100–1600
Purdue
1200–1480
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
1280–1450
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • PurdueRigor and GPA very important71%
  • Virginia Polytechnic Institute and StateGPA and school record required

Who's on each campus

Purdue is a bit larger than Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State (44,503 vs. 30,923 undergrads); Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Purdue44.5K
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State30.9K
Pell Grant share
Purdue13%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State15%

Majors and faculty

Mechanical Engineering leads at Purdue, and Management Science at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State.

Students per faculty member
Purdue14 to 1
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State17 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • PurdueMechanical Engineering7%
  • Virginia Polytechnic Institute and StateManagement Science8%

What each costs

Purdue costs about $9.5K less a year than Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Purdue$30.5K
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State$40K
Aid generosity
Purdue13%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State12%

What each pays off

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State's former students earn more, a median $81.7K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 70% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Purdue$72.4K
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State$81.7K
Graduation rate
Purdue78%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State87%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got more selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • PurdueGrowing+97%
  • Virginia Polytechnic Institute and StateGrowing+153%
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