MIT is a highly selective institution with a focus on STEM fields and a higher cost, but it offers generous financial aid. UC Berkeley provides a broader range of academic disciplines and a more accessible acceptance rate, especially for in-state students.
| Metric | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) |
|---|---|---|
| Acceptance Rate | Approximately 4% to 5%. For the class of 2026, the acceptance rate was 3.9%. For the Class of 2028, the acceptance rate was 4.52% for undergraduate admissions. | 11% to 12% |
| Tuition and Fees (In-State) | $60,156 (2024-2025). Note that MIT does not differentiate tuition based on residency. | $16,608 (2024-2025) |
| Tuition and Fees (Out-of-State) | Same as in-state: $60,156 (2024-2025) | Not available |
| Student-Faculty Ratio | Not available | 19.4 to 1 |
| Graduation Rate (6-year) | Around 95-96% | 93% to 94% |
| US News & World Report Ranking | Not available | Not available |
| Research Expenditure | Not available | Not available |
| Endowment Size | Not available | Not available |
| Number of Undergraduate Students | Around 4,543 | 31,548 |
| Number of Graduate Students | Not available | Not available |
| Average SAT Score | Range: 1510-1580 | 1310-1530 |
| Average ACT Score | Range: 34-36 | 30-35 |
| Location (City) | Cambridge, Massachusetts (Boston Area) | Berkeley, California (San Francisco Bay Area) |
| Availability of Financial Aid | 56% of students receive financial aid. MIT meets 100% of demonstrated financial need. | Nearly 70% of California undergrads get an average of $20,000 in grants and scholarships. |
| Most Popular Majors | Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, and Mathematics | Computer Science, Economics, and Cellular Biology |
| Price | Not available | Not available |
| Features | Families with a typical income of less than $140,000 will have tuition fully covered. High starting salary for alumni (around $82,200). Considered one of the most selective universities globally. High graduation rate (around 95-96%). Extremely selective with a low acceptance rate (around 4-5%). High total cost of attendance (around $76,776 in 2022-2023). | Renowned for academic excellence, Pioneering research opportunities, Vast alumni network, Diverse courses spanning humanities to engineering, Legacy of prominent civil rights activism, Undergraduate courses can be academically demanding and intense, Bell curves are common in STEM classes, Liberal Arts classes can be taught by professors more interested in touting their own prowess with the material than helping their students understand or achieve in class |
| Rating | Not available | Not available |