Private nonprofit · College
Art Center College of Design
Pasadena, California · Midsize city
- 74.5%
- Admit rate
- $48,661
- Avg net price
- 79%
- Graduation rate
- $71,958
- Median earnings
Art Center College of Design is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Pasadena, California (midsize city setting), enrolling 2,017 undergraduates.
About Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, 10 miles (16 km) northeast of downtown Los Angeles. The earliest known inhabitants of present-day Pasadena and its surroundings were members of the Hahamog-na tribe, a branch of the Tongva Nation. They spoke the Tongva language, belonging to the Northern subfamily of the Uto-Aztecan language group. Pasadena is home to the Tournament of Roses Parade, held each year on January 1 (or on January 2, if the 1st falls on a Sunday). The first parade was held in 1890 and was originally sponsored by the Valley Hunt Club, a Pasadena social club. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Midsize city
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 9 miles to Los Angeles, CA
- To the ocean
- 21 miles
- Nearest airport
- 10 miles to Hollywood Burbank/Bob Hope (BUR) · major hub
How Art Center College of Design compares
More selective than 56% · #52 most selective of 107 in California
Higher than 88% · #31 of 122 in California
Higher than 78%
Higher than 85% · #46 of 130 in California
Cheaper than 1% · #111 cheapest of 118 in California
Lower than 3%
Lower than 83%
Larger than 58%
Percentiles compare Art Center College of Design with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in California.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate2,01788%
- Graduate27012%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women1,11455%
- Men90345%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White10%
- Black1.2%
- Hispanic9.3%
- Asian30%
- Other or multiracial49%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 2,017
- Graduate enrollment
- 270
- Student–faculty ratio
- 9 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 22%
- First-generation students
- 24%
- Students over 25
- 16%
- Median family income
- $30,283
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $84,447
- Endowment
- $152,688,000
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Admissions
- Admission rate
- 74.5%
- Test scores
- Not considered
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- —
- SAT average
- —
- SAT reading
- —
- SAT math
- —
- ACT composite
- —
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $54,170
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $4,000
- Total cost of attendance
- $75,649
- Average net price
- $48,661
Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.
Outcomes
- Graduated (within 6 years)
- 79%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 35%
- First-year retention
- 86%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $53,562
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $71,958
- Median debt at graduation
- $31,000
- Students with federal loans
- 33%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 60%
About 44% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.
Campus life & athletics
- On-campus housing
- No
- Application fee
- $50
Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.1 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 1
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 2 campuses (2,308 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.
Reported offenses in an average year
The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.
By offense type, per year
Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.
What you'll actually pay, by family income
Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.
College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.
Four-year (or more) true cost
Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.
$44,738/year × about 4.8 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.
Does the school pay you to attend?
Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.
A meaningful share of freshmen — 65% — get grant money from Art Center College of Design itself, averaging $14,716, which softens the sticker price.
Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 275 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $71,958
- Typical debt at graduation
- $31,000
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 43%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 61%
Typical debt would take roughly 4.3 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.
Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.
The pay gap here
Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.
Men out-earn women by $14,427 (22%) a decade out.
Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.
Campus climate
- Summer high
- 91°F
- Winter low
- 45°F
- Annual rain
- 20.1″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Pasadena, CA US station (2.7 mi from campus).
What Art Center College of Design graduates study — and earn
Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.
Colleges similar to Art Center College of Design
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Art Center College of Design side by side →
University of Puget Sound
Tacoma, Washington · Midsize city · 25 mi to Seattle
- Students
- 1,594
- Admission
- 72%
- Net price
- $38k
- SAT
- 1296
- GPA
- 3.6
- Earnings
- $70k
Salve Regina University
Newport, Rhode Island · Large suburb · 25 mi to Providence
- Students
- 2,121
- Admission
- 68%
- Net price
- $37k
- SAT
- 1232
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $73k
Saint Anselm College
Manchester, New Hampshire · Midsize suburb · 3 mi to Manchester
- Students
- 2,087
- Admission
- 78%
- Net price
- $35k
- SAT
- 1201
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $73k
Misericordia University
Dallas, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 17 mi to Scranton
- Students
- 1,672
- Admission
- 71%
- Net price
- $37k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $64k
Merrimack College
North Andover, Massachusetts · Large suburb · 22 mi to Boston
- Students
- 3,916
- Admission
- 70%
- Net price
- $38k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $76k
Seattle University
Seattle, Washington · Large city · 1 mi to Seattle
- Students
- 4,062
- Admission
- 77%
- Net price
- $35k
- SAT
- 1307
- GPA
- 3.6
- Earnings
- $75k
Colleges near Art Center College of Design
Capstone College
Pasadena, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 148 students
Saybrook University
Pasadena, CA · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Pacific Oaks College
Pasadena, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 312 students
Glendale Community College
Glendale, CA · Public · Associate · 10,509 students
Providence Christian College
Pasadena, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 168 students
Los Angeles College of Music
Pasadena, CA · Private for-profit · Bachelor's · 227 students
Fuller Theological Seminary
Pasadena, CA · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Integrity College of Health
Pasadena, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 225 students
Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.













