Boston University vs Carnegie Mellon University

Boston, MA · Pittsburgh, PA · largest Scorecard gap: median earnings (6 yr)

Scorecard match plate

Pair MA:PA

PRIVATE-NP-PAIR · CROSS-STATE · ACCEPT-TIGHT · NET-SPLIT · EARN-SPLIT · DEBT-PAR · COMPLETE-HIGH · GAP-EARN

  • PRIVATE-NP-PAIR Private nonprofit pair
  • CROSS-STATE MA × PA
  • ACCEPT-TIGHT Tight admission
  • NET-SPLIT Net-price split
  • EARN-SPLIT Earnings split
  • DEBT-PAR Debt near-par
  • COMPLETE-HIGH High completion
  • GAP-EARN Largest gap · Median Earnings (6 yr)

Instrument codes from this pair's College Scorecard ownership, geography, acceptance, net price, earnings, debt, and completion, plus the ENROLL-RACE · single · 2013–2023 decade-path stamp below, not a ranking or recommendation.

Decade path · College Scorecard

Both enrollments grew, different paces

ENROLL-RACE · single · 2013–2023

Undergraduate headcount rose at both Boston University and Carnegie Mellon University across 2013–2023 on similar paces, while acceptance rates tightened on both sides, a growth-under-squeeze pattern rather than a pure size race.

  • Carnegie Mellon University: enrollment grew +23.2% over 2013–2023; fitted +137 students/yr fitted, r² 0.97.
  • Boston University: enrollment grew +8.4% over 2013–2023; fitted +135 students/yr fitted, r² 0.66.
  • Boston University: acceptance rate tightened -76.2% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.92).
  • Carnegie Mellon University: acceptance rate tightened -55.3% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.95).

College Scorecard institution series; dollars are nominal. Direction claims require r² ≥ 0.40 on the fitted annual slope, otherwise the page reports the observed range. Descriptive history, not a recommendation.

Scorecard metrics

Cards ordered by relative gap on this pair. Teal = better side.

Largest gaps: Boston University vs Carnegie Mellon University

  1. MEDIAN-EARNINGS-(6 Carnegie Mellon University leads on median earnings (6 yr) ($105,360 vs $65,655 at Boston University)
  2. MEDIAN-EARNINGS-(1 Carnegie Mellon University leads on median earnings (10 yr) ($114,862 vs $83,238 at Boston University)
  3. AVG-NET-PRICE Boston University leads on avg net price ($24,402 vs $31,944 at Carnegie Mellon University)

Boston University profile · Carnegie Mellon University profile · Compare other colleges

Also on the Scorecard board

Median Earnings (6 yr) and other Scorecard questions

On median earnings (6 yr), who leads between Boston University and Carnegie Mellon University?▼
Carnegie Mellon University leads on median earnings (6 yr) at $105,360 versus $65,655 at Boston University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On median earnings (10 yr), who leads between Boston University and Carnegie Mellon University?▼
Carnegie Mellon University leads on median earnings (10 yr) at $114,862 versus $83,238 at Boston University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On avg net price, who leads between Boston University and Carnegie Mellon University?▼
Boston University leads on avg net price at $24,402 versus $31,944 at Carnegie Mellon University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard College Scorecard institution outcomes (earnings, completion, debt); median earnings (6 yr) focus for this pair · 2025