Public · University
California State University-Monterey Bay
Seaside, California · Midsize suburb
- 97.4%
- Admit rate
- $13,663
- Avg net price
- 59%
- Graduation rate
- $59,247
- Median earnings
California State University-Monterey Bay is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Seaside, California (midsize suburb setting), enrolling 6,819 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI).
About Seaside, California
Seaside, formerly East Monterey, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States. In 1888, a New Yorker, Dr. John L. D. Roberts, founded, adjacent to Hotel Del Monte in Del Monte, Monterey, California, East Monterey as a subdivision of Monterey, later renamed Seaside, on 160 acres of land purchased from David Houghton, his uncle, as a resort community. The Defense Manpower Data Center has an office in Seaside, on the former Fort Ord. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Midsize suburb
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 48 miles to San Jose, CA
- To the ocean
- 2 miles
- Nearest airport
- 5 miles to Monterey (MRY)
How California State University-Monterey Bay compares
More selective than 9% · #97 most selective of 107 in California
Higher than 59% · #73 of 122 in California
Higher than 62%
Higher than 66% · #83 of 130 in California
Cheaper than 78% · #28 cheapest of 118 in California
Lower than 94%
Lower than 4%
Larger than 83%
Percentiles compare California State University-Monterey Bay 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-Monterey Bay campus
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate6,81989%
- Graduate80611%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women4,57667%
- Men2,24333%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White26%
- Black2.2%
- Hispanic56%
- Asian6.0%
- Other or multiracial9.7%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 6,819
- Graduate enrollment
- 806
- Student–faculty ratio
- 24 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 43%
- First-generation students
- 52%
- Students over 25
- 18%
- Median family income
- $28,759
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $109,215
- Endowment
- $43,519,789
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 943 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From California93%
- Other U.S. states4.9%
- International1.8%
Most first-years stay in state — California State University-Monterey Bay draws overwhelmingly from California.
2% 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
- 97.4%
- Test scores
- Not considered
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- —
- SAT average
- —
- SAT reading
- —
- SAT math
- —
- ACT composite
- —
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $7,779
- Out-of-state tuition
- $20,379
- Room & board
- $17,234
- Books & supplies
- $899
- Total cost of attendance
- $26,987
- Average net price
- $13,663
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)
- 59%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 39%
- First-year retention
- 80%
- Transferred to another college
- 5%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $48,648
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $59,247
- Median debt at graduation
- $12,750
- Students with federal loans
- 28%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 62%
About 20% 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
- Yes
- Dorm capacity
- 3,376
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 50%
- Housing charge (year)
- $8,786
- Meal plan (year)
- $5,316
- Application fee
- $70
- Athletics
- NCAA Division II without football
- Varsity athletes
- 316 (148 men · 168 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)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- C
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 2.3 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 43
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 10
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 2 campuses (7,713 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.
$12,440/year × about 4.5 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.
Modest institutional aid: 48% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $5,588. 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 891 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)
- $59,247
- Typical debt at graduation
- $12,750
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 22%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 58%
Typical debt would take roughly 2.2 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 $3,421 (6%) 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
- 71°F
- Winter low
- 43°F
- Annual rain
- 16.2″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Monterey Peninsul AP, CA US station (5.2 mi from campus).
What California State University-Monterey Bay 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 California State University-Monterey Bay
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare California State University-Monterey Bay side by side →
University of Wyoming
Laramie, Wyoming · Remote town · 113 mi to Denver
- Students
- 7,944
- Admission
- 97%
- Net price
- $14k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $57k
The University of Texas at Tyler
Tyler, Texas · Midsize city · 89 mi to Shreveport
- Students
- 7,440
- Admission
- 94%
- Net price
- $13k
- SAT
- 1114
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $57k
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Edwardsville, Illinois · Large suburb · 16 mi to St. Louis
- Students
- 8,750
- Admission
- 98%
- Net price
- $15k
- SAT
- 1100
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $56k
Saint Cloud State University
Saint Cloud, Minnesota · Small city · 59 mi to Minneapolis
- Students
- 5,088
- Admission
- 95%
- Net price
- $14k
- SAT
- 1092
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $56k
Texas Woman's University
Denton, Texas · Midsize city · 35 mi to Fort Worth
- Students
- 8,767
- Admission
- 96%
- Net price
- $12k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $57k
Eastern Washington University
Cheney, Washington · Fringe town · 14 mi to Spokane
- Students
- 6,222
- Admission
- 91%
- Net price
- $14k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $58k
Colleges near California State University-Monterey Bay
Naval Postgraduate School
Monterey, CA · Public · Graduate
Monterey Peninsula College
Monterey, CA · Public · Associate · 5,624 students
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey
Monterey, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 4 students
Hartnell College
Salinas, CA · Public · Associate · 9,453 students
Waynes College of Beauty
Salinas, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 46 students
Central Coast College
Salinas, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 569 students
CET-Salinas
Salinas, CA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 171 students
CET-Watsonville
Watsonville, CA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 142 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.














