University of Southern California vs Yale University

Los Angeles, CA · New Haven, CT · largest Scorecard gap: acceptance rate

Scorecard match plate

Pair CA:CT

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

  • PRIVATE-NP-PAIR Private nonprofit pair
  • CROSS-STATE CA × CT
  • ACCEPT-TIGHT Tight admission
  • NET-SPLIT Net-price split
  • EARN-PAR Earnings near-par
  • DEBT-SPLIT Debt split
  • COMPLETE-HIGH High completion
  • GAP-ACCEPT Largest gap · Acceptance Rate

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 University of Southern California and Yale 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.

  • Yale University: enrollment grew +25.6% over 2013–2023; fitted +122 students/yr fitted, r² 0.41.
  • University of Southern California: enrollment grew +15.1% over 2013–2023; fitted +285 students/yr fitted, r² 0.94.
  • University of Southern California: acceptance rate tightened -49.5% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.80).
  • Yale University: acceptance rate tightened -36.2% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.69).

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: University of Southern California vs Yale University

  1. ACCEPTANCE-RATE Yale University leads on acceptance rate (3.9% vs 9.8% at University of Southern California)
  2. MEDIAN-DEBT-AT-GRA Yale University leads on median debt at graduation ($12,975 vs $18,000 at University of Southern California)
  3. AVG-NET-PRICE Yale University leads on avg net price ($23,777 vs $32,740 at University of Southern California)

University of Southern California profile · Yale University profile · Compare other colleges

Also on the Scorecard board

Acceptance Rate and other Scorecard questions

On acceptance rate, who leads between University of Southern California and Yale University?
Yale University leads on acceptance rate at 3.9% versus 9.8% at University of Southern California. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On median debt at graduation, who leads between University of Southern California and Yale University?
Yale University leads on median debt at graduation at $12,975 versus $18,000 at University of Southern California. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On avg net price, who leads between University of Southern California and Yale University?
Yale University leads on avg net price at $23,777 versus $32,740 at University of Southern California. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

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