Public · University

California State University-Dominguez Hills

Carson, California · Small city

93.3%
Admit rate
$8,615
Avg net price
43%
Graduation rate
$57,162
Median earnings

California State University-Dominguez Hills is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Carson, California (small city setting), enrolling 12,538 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI).

PublicMidsize · 12,538 undergradsSmall cityAccessible · 93% admitNCAA Division II without footballNear the coast

About Carson, California

Carson is a city in the South Bay and Harbor regions of Los Angeles County, California, located 13 miles (21 km) south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately 14 miles (23 km) away from Los Angeles International Airport. For thousands of years before the arrival of the first Europeans, Tongva Indians lived in the area. Carson lies on part of the Spanish land grant Rancho San Pedro, from the King of Spain in 1784. County of Los Angeles Public Library operates the Carson Regional Library and the Dr. Martin Luther King Library. Both libraries are in Carson. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Small city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
To the ocean
7 miles
Nearest airport
6 miles to Jack Northrop Field Hawthorne (HHR)

How California State University-Dominguez Hills compares

Selectivity93.3%

More selective than 16% · #81 most selective of 107 in California

Graduation rate43%

Higher than 27% · #101 of 122 in California

First-year retention74%

Higher than 41%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$57,162

Higher than 60% · #89 of 130 in California

Average net price$8,615

Cheaper than 94% · #11 cheapest of 118 in California

Median debt at graduation$13,807

Lower than 93%

Student–faculty ratio21 : 1

Lower than 8%

Undergraduate enrollment12,538

Larger than 91%

Percentiles compare California State University-Dominguez Hills with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in California.

California State University-Dominguez Hills campus

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

15,088students
  • Undergraduate12,53883%
  • Graduate2,55017%

Undergraduates by gender

12,538undergrads
  • Women8,24166%
  • Men4,29734%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White4.0%
  • Black13%
  • Hispanic71%
  • Asian6.9%
  • Other or multiracial5.7%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
12,538
Graduate enrollment
2,550
Student–faculty ratio
21 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
63%
First-generation students
59%
Students over 25
31%
Median family income
$20,044
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$106,101
Endowment
$26,555,410

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 1,721 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From California99%
  • Other U.S. states0.5%
  • International0.5%

Most first-years stay in state — California State University-Dominguez Hills draws overwhelmingly from California.

1% came from outside the U.S. Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
93.3%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$7,449
Out-of-state tuition
$20,049
Room & board
$18,444
Books & supplies
$1,152
Total cost of attendance
$23,191
Average net price
$8,615

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)
43%
Graduated on time (4 years)
20%
First-year retention
74%
Transferred to another college
3%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$46,827
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$57,162
Median debt at graduation
$13,807
Students with federal loans
20%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
44%

About 23% 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)

All students
20%
Low-income (Pell)
56%
First-generation
55%

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
Yes
Dorm capacity
1,167
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
9%
Housing charge (year)
$10,215
Application fee
$70
Athletics
NCAA Division II without football
Varsity athletes
239 (110 men · 129 women)

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%.

Varsity sports (8)

Soccer76
Baseball42
Basketball33
Softball25
Volleyball23
Track and Field (Indoor)14
Track and Field (Outdoor)14
Golf12

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
2.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
29
Property offenses (2022–2024)
65

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (15,182 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.

31reported offenses a year
9.7 violent a year22 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
17
Motor vehicle theft
4.7
Fondling
4.0
Aggravated assault
3.3
Robbery
1.0
Rape
0.7
Statutory rape
0.7

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.

< $30k
$7,303
$30–48k
$8,090
$48–75k
$8,855
$75–110k
$12,323
$110k+
$18,947

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.

Est. total to a degree
$42,587

$8,855/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.

79%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$5,052
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 79% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $5,052. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

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 1,908 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)
$57,162
Typical debt at graduation
$13,807
Debt vs. one year's pay
24%
Out-earn a HS grad
59%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.4 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

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.

Women
$55,923
Men
$59,788

Men out-earn women by $3,865 (7%) 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
79°F
Winter low
49°F
Annual rain
11.8″

Average temperature

HighLow
40°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.01.53.0JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Hawthorne Muni AP, CA US station (6 mi from campus).

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 California State University-Dominguez Hills

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare California State University-Dominguez Hills side by side →

Colleges near California State University-Dominguez Hills

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.