Columbia University in the City of New York vs Vanderbilt University

New York, NY · Nashville, TN · largest Scorecard gap: median debt at graduation

Scorecard match plate

Pair NY:TN

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

  • PRIVATE-NP-PAIR Private nonprofit pair
  • CROSS-STATE NY × TN
  • ACCEPT-TIGHT Tight admission
  • NET-SPLIT Net-price split
  • EARN-SPLIT Earnings split
  • DEBT-SPLIT Debt split
  • COMPLETE-HIGH High completion
  • GAP-DEBT Largest gap · Median Debt at Graduation

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

Decade path · College Scorecard

Nearly parallel enrollment growth

ENROLL-RACE · narrow · 2013–2023

Undergraduate headcount rose at both Columbia University in the City of New York and Vanderbilt 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.

  • Columbia University in the City of New York: enrollment grew +11.7% over 2013–2023; fitted +92 students/yr fitted, r² 0.74.
  • Vanderbilt University: enrollment grew +5.1% over 2013–2023; fitted +38 students/yr fitted, r² 0.82.
  • Columbia University in the City of New York: acceptance rate tightened -43.0% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.79).
  • Vanderbilt University: acceptance rate tightened -50.7% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.81).

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: Columbia University in the City of New York vs Vanderbilt University

  1. MEDIAN-DEBT-AT-GRA Vanderbilt University leads on median debt at graduation ($14,000 vs $21,500 at Columbia University in the City of New York)
  2. ACCEPTANCE-RATE Columbia University in the City of New York leads on acceptance rate (4.0% vs 5.9% at Vanderbilt University)
  3. AVG-NET-PRICE Vanderbilt University leads on avg net price ($15,846 vs $21,590 at Columbia University in the City of New York)

Columbia University in the City of New York profile · Vanderbilt University profile · Compare other colleges

Median Debt at Graduation and other Scorecard questions

On median debt at graduation, who leads between Columbia University in the City of New York and Vanderbilt University?
Vanderbilt University leads on median debt at graduation at $14,000 versus $21,500 at Columbia University in the City of New York. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On acceptance rate, who leads between Columbia University in the City of New York and Vanderbilt University?
Columbia University in the City of New York leads on acceptance rate at 4.0% versus 5.9% at Vanderbilt University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On avg net price, who leads between Columbia University in the City of New York and Vanderbilt University?
Vanderbilt University leads on avg net price at $15,846 versus $21,590 at Columbia University in the City of New York. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

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