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California Colleges Key Statistics

California Best Schools Compare All California Schools
Average Tuition & Fees $22,392
($13,972)
Average Acceptance Rates 68.21 %
Total Student Population 2,764,402
Average Graduation Rates 63.17 %
Average Student To Faculty Ratio 18.78 to 1

California Colleges Distribution

For the academic year 2024-2025, 672 colleges and universities are active in California - 172 public and 500 private schools. By school level, there are 291 4-year, 187 community colleges (2-4 years), and 194 trade/vocational schools (less than 2-years) in California. The following table shows the number of schools by school type and level in California.
California College Distribution by Type and Level
Number of Schools
School Types
Public172 schools
Private (not-for-profit)179 schools
Private (for-profit)321 schools
School Levels
4-Year or High291 schools
Community Colleges (2-4 Year)187 schools
Trade Schools (Less than 2-year)194 schools

Average Key Statistics for California Colleges

The average acceptance rate for California colleges is 68.21% and the average graduation rate is 63.17% in academic year 2024-2025. Total 2,764,402 students including in both undergraduate and graduate programs have attended California colleges and universities and the average students to faculty ratio is 18.78 to 1.
Tightest California Colleges to Admit California Colleges with Highest SAT Scores Largest California Colleges with Most Students
Next charts are illustrating the core statistics for colleges and universities located in California.
[Chart] California Colleges Academic Statistics
Average Transfer-out Rate for California colleges is 11.454545454545 %
Average Retention Rate for California colleges is 78.440573770492 %

2025 Average Tuition & Fees For California Colleges

For the academic year 2024-2025, the average undergraduate tuition & fees for California colleges are $13,972 for California residents and $22,392 for non-residents. For graduate schools, its average tuition and fees are $20,109 for in-state students and $25,355 for out-of-state students.
Expensive California Colleges Inexpensive California Colleges Highest Graduate Tuition in California Colleges Lowest Graduate Tuition in California Colleges
California 2024-2025 Average Tuition & Fees
In-StateOut-of-State
Undergraduate$13,972$22,392
Graduate$20,109$25,355
[Chart] California State 2024-2025 Average Tuition & Fees

Offered Degree Programs at California Colleges

California colleges and universities are offering 27,099 programs through online and on-site education. Next table lists number of programs by offered degree.

Offered Programs at California State
Award LevelTotal Number of ProgramsAvailable Online Class
Less than 12-Week Certificate33517
Less than one year certificate4,572187
One but less than two years certificate3,33583
Associate's Degree8,066361
Two but less than four years certificate20713
Bachelor's Degree4,828335
Post Bachelor's Degree605115
Master's Degree3,552495
Post Master's Degree26749
Doctor's degree - research/scholarship1,10566
Doctor's degree - professional practice19828
Doctor's degree - other297

Special Learning Opportunities at California State

In California, 11 colleges offer all programs online completely. 349 colleges offer the undergraduate online programs and 173 colleges offer the graduate online programs. 51 colleges have the ROTC programs and 183 colleges offer the study abroad programs. Next table shows the number of California schools which are offering special learning opportunities by category.

Special Learning Opportunities at California State
Online Completely11 out of 679 Schools
Undergraduate Online Classes349 out of 679 Schools
Graduate Online Classes173 out of 679 Schools
ROTC51 out of 679 Schools
Weekend/Evening College349 out of 679 Schools
Teacher certificate95 out of 679 Schools
Study Abroad183 out of 679 Schools
Know about California Colleges