FIU vs FAU: admissions, cost & the right fit

What the admission profiles actually tell you

FIU’s dated Fall Direct profile is from 2025; FAU’s 2026 profile combines summer and fall admits. A direct selectivity ranking from those two bands would overstate what the data can tell us.

Swipe the table on a small screen. These are admitted profiles, not enrolled cohorts, application cutoffs or your student’s odds. GPA calculations differ by university and are not the Bright Futures GPA. The population and source labels above are part of the comparison; do not separate them from the numbers.

What does your SAT mean for FIU vs FAU?

A 1300, 1350 or 1400 can mean something different at each university. These examples locate a score within the published profile; they do not estimate acceptance probabilities.

Check your exact score:

At 1350: FIU — inside its published range; FAU — above its published range.

Plan the application and the last useful test

These Florida public universities require an accepted standardized test for first-year admission. Check the school’s current SAT, ACT or CLT reporting instructions, superscoring rules and latest accepted test date before booking a retake. An application deadline may be earlier than a final score deadline; a scholarship or specialized program may close sooner.

Bright Futures changes tuition—not the whole college bill

For 2027 high-school graduates, the SAT targets are 1330 for FAS and 1190 for FMS. For 2028 graduates, they are 1350 and 1200. A 1300 clears the FMS SAT target in both years; a 1350 or 1400 clears the FAS SAT target. GPA, approved hours and all other requirements still apply.

At an eligible public university, FAS covers 100% and FMS 75% of eligible tuition and applicable fees. Housing, food, transport and personal expenses remain. The budgets below are the universities’ published 2026–27 Florida-resident on-campus estimates before aid. Their credit loads differ, so these totals are not a normalized price ranking.

Illustrative annual budget remaining after Bright Futures

Where the budget gives a credit load, the calculations below subtract a matching fall/spring award from the published on-campus budget. These are planning estimates, not bills or financial-aid offers. They include living expenses and exclude other aid; rounded budget figures can leave small tuition differences.

FIU award example: At 15 eligible credits in each of two terms, the published 2026–27 rates produce about $6,561 in FAS or $4,921 in FMS funding annually, including the stated per-term components. This is an award estimate, not the remaining cost of attendance.

FAU: Awards adjust to actual eligible enrollment. FAS covers eligible tuition and applicable fees; FMS covers 75%. Compare the resulting award with the chosen housing budget and any charges the scholarship excludes.

Build your cost after Bright Futures

Use the university’s award notice for your actual credit load: subtract that Bright Futures amount and other confirmed grants from your own tuition, housing and living budget. Do not subtract a 30-credit scholarship from a 26- or 28-credit budget. Loans are financing, not discounts.

Use our Bright Futures scholarship calculator to explore the scholarship side, then compare the living arrangements the family would actually choose.

Before estimating scholarship coverage, review the Bright Futures requirements by graduation year and Bright Futures GPA calculator. Then use the eligibility calculator to check the relevant inputs.

Look beyond the university name

FIU hospitality at Biscayne Bay, FIU business at Modesto Maidique, FAU nursing and Wilkes Honors College in Jupiter are different destination-and-program combinations. Write the exact destination beside each major, then compare the commute and admission route.

How large will the classes feel?

Ask both departments for typical enrollment in the first-year courses your student would take, plus lab, discussion and upper-division sections. A university-wide student–faculty ratio is not average class size. Ask to see a normal first-year course schedule as well as any honors options.

Use a visit to test the weekly routine

Walk from likely housing to a required class, find tutoring and advising, and ask how students access projects or placements. For a commuter, add travel time and parking to the schedule. Internship access is useful only if the student can meet the requirements and make the journey.

Turn FIU vs FAU into a plan for your teen

Which South Florida plan works academically and financially? Bring your student’s current score report, grades, intended major, graduation year and realistic housing budget. We can help separate the next useful testing milestone from decisions that depend on program fit or admissions review.

FIU college profile · FAU college profile

Sources, dates and how to use this comparison

Reviewed September 11, 2026 by Florida Test Prep. University and state sources govern admission and scholarship decisions. Planning advice on this page is our interpretation. Profile years are labeled rather than silently mixing admitted and enrolled statistics.

1. FIU admissions profile
2. FIU application deadlines
3. FIU 2026–27 cost of attendance
4. FIU program requirements
5. FAU admissions profile
6. FAU application deadlines
7. FAU 2026–27 cost of attendance
8. FAU program requirements
9. Florida Bright Futures initial eligibility handbook

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