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Colleges in California

Solyo has full profiles for 50 colleges in California: 30 public, 20 private nonprofit. The median family here pays $14,480 a year after grant aid, $7,085 below the national median. Half of these schools admit more than 66% of applicants. They sit across 39 cities, concentrated in Claremont, Los Angeles, Pasadena.

Hardest to get into
3%
California Institute of Technology
Lowest net price
$3,967
California State University-Los Angeles
Biggest in-state saving
$34,200
per year at University of California-Los Angeles
Most Pell recipients
66%
California State University-Los Angeles

What California costs

Published in-state tuition at the median California public university is $8,246 a year before aid. Residency is worth the most at University of California-Los Angeles, where an out-of-state family pays $34,200 more for the same degree.

After grants and scholarships the range runs from $3,967 at California State University-Los Angeles to $58,098 at Pepperdine University. That spread is the reason a sticker price is a poor way to build a list in California.

Why net price beats sticker price, and what an average one does and does not tell a particular family.

How selective California schools are

California Institute of Technology admits 3% of applicants and California State University-Stanislaus admits 98%. A list drawn only from the selective end of that range has no likely school in it, which is the most common mistake in a first draft.

The highest average SAT reported in California is 1553 at Stanford University.

What an acceptance rate actually measures

Every California college profile

Ordered by selectivity, most selective first.

Other West states

On median net price California is the 3rd most affordable of the 13 West states in this directory, and the 11th most accessible on median acceptance rate. In-state pricing makes the neighbouring states worth checking too.

Where to go next