Academic Comparison between Cal Poly and California Northstate

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo and California Northstate University are frequently compared when students or parents prepare college admissions. Cal Poly is a four-year, public school located in San Luis Obispo, CA and California Northstate is a four-year, private (for-profit) school located in Elk Grove, CA.

The following list compares two colleges briefly in important perspectives. You can compare them with comprehensive information on full comparison page.

Cal Poly is a public and California Northstate is a private (for-profit) school and both are four-year schools.
California Northstate has more expensive tuition & fees ($61,600) than Cal Poly ($33,230).
It is harder to admit to Cal Poly than California Northstate.
Cal Poly has more students with 23,069 students while California Northstate has 981 students.
California Northstate has a lower number of students per faculty with 3 to 1 while Cal Poly's ratio is 19 to 1.
Cal Poly has more full-time faculties with 931 faculties while California Northstate has 106 full-time faculties.

Comparison Table with important Academic Factors

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	vs.	California Northstate University
San Luis Obispo, California	Location	Elk Grove, California
Four-year, Public	School Type	four-year, Private (for-profit)
Master's degree	Highest Degree Offered	Doctor's degree
Master's College and University (larger programs)	Carnegie Classification
In-State$12,161 Out-Of-State$33,230	2025 Tuition & Fees	$61,600
52%	% Receiving Financial Aid	34%
$12,264	Average Amount of Financial Aid	$11,487

31.32 %	Acceptance Rates	92.47 %
24.61 %	Yield (Enrollment Rates)	5.81 %
-	SAT Score	-
-	ACT Score	-
86 %	Graduation Rate	100 %
1 %	Transfer-out Rate	-
96 %	Retention Rate	86 %
23,069	Student Population	981
931	Number of Faculties	106
19 to 1	Students to Faculty Ratio	3 to 1
Distance Learning (Online Classes), ROTC, Study Abroad, Teacher Certification	Special Learning Opportunities	Weekend/Evening College
Academic/career counseling service, Employment services, Placement services, On-campus daycare	On Campus Student Services	Academic/career counseling service, Placement services