Pennsylvania State University, University Park vs University of Pittsburgh: Acceptance Rate, SAT & Net Price

Pennsylvania State University, University Park and University of Pittsburgh are about equally selective, admitting 60.6% and 59.4% of applicants respectively. For a family earning $48,001–$75,000, the average net price is about $25,667 per year at Pennsylvania State University, University Park versus $23,192 at University of Pittsburgh.

Pennsylvania State University, University Park vs University of Pittsburgh: admissions and cost statistics from the most recent Common Data Set, IPEDS, and College Scorecard
MetricPennsylvania State University, University ParkUniversity of Pittsburgh
Overall acceptance rate60.6%59.4%
SAT middle 50%1250–14101280–1470
Avg unweighted GPA3.843.88
Yield rate15.0%13.0%
Class size9,1694,596
Net price, $48,001–$75,000 income$25,667$23,192
Net price, over $110,000 income$37,831$36,008

Admissions and cost data as of July 3, 2026 (CDS 2024–25 cycle), from the most recent Common Data Set, IPEDS, and College Scorecard. Rows appear only where both colleges report the statistic.

Frequently asked questions

Is Pennsylvania State University, University Park harder to get into than University of Pittsburgh?

The two are about equally selective: Pennsylvania State University, University Park admits 60.6% of applicants and University of Pittsburgh admits 59.4%, based on the most recent Common Data Set.

Which is cheaper for a middle-income family, Pennsylvania State University, University Park or University of Pittsburgh?

For a family earning $48,001–$75,000, the average net price is about $25,667 per year at Pennsylvania State University, University Park and $23,192 at University of Pittsburgh, so University of Pittsburgh is the lower-cost option at that income level (source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard/IPEDS data).

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