Georgia Southern University vs Georgia State University

Metric	Georgia Southern University	Georgia State University
Undergraduate enrollment	21,790	26,623
Acceptance rate Lower means more selective	87.9%	55.4%
Average SAT	1,053	1,076
Median ACT	21	23
In-state tuition	$6,022	$8,664
Out-of-state tuition	$17,734	$24,840
Average net price What students actually pay after aid	$15,267	$15,931
Median debt at graduation	$23,250	$20,903
Graduation rate	54.9%	53.1%
First-year retention	77.8%	79.9%
Median salary (10 yr)	$53,236	$47,384

Metric

Georgia Southern University

Georgia State University

Undergraduate enrollment

21,790

26,623

Acceptance rate
Lower means more selective

87.9%

55.4%

Average SAT

1,053

1,076

Median ACT

In-state tuition

$6,022

$8,664

Out-of-state tuition

$17,734

$24,840

Average net price
What students actually pay after aid

$15,267

$15,931

Median debt at graduation

$23,250

$20,903

Graduation rate

54.9%

53.1%

First-year retention

77.8%

79.9%

Median salary (10 yr)

$53,236

$47,384

What the numbers say

Georgia State University is the harder admit at 55.4%, against 87.9% at Georgia Southern University.
Georgia Southern University costs less after aid — $15,267 a year versus $15,931, a difference of $664 annually, or roughly $2,656 across four years.
Georgia Southern University graduates report higher median earnings — $53,236 against $47,384 ten years after entry.
Georgia Southern University graduates a larger share of its students — 54.9% versus 53.1%.
On pure return — salary divided by net price — Georgia Southern University comes out ahead at 3.5× versus 3.0×.

Comparison tables are a starting point, not a decision. Three things matter more than anything in the table above:

Your real aid offer. Net price is an average across all income levels. Two students at the same school can pay amounts that differ by tens of thousands. Wait for actual award letters before ruling anything out on cost.
Your intended major. Earnings vary more between majors at one school than between schools for one major. A computer science graduate from the "lower earning" school here will likely out-earn a general studies graduate from the other.
Whether you will finish. Graduation rate is the metric most predictive of whether the money spent turns into a credential. Campus fit, support services, and commute all feed into it more than prestige does.

Visit before you commit

Both Georgia Southern University and Georgia State University run campus visits. Spending an afternoon on each will tell you things no dataset can.