Public · Community college

Merritt College

Oakland, California · Large city

15%
Transfer rate: $14,021
Avg net price: 26%
Grad / completion: $44,392
Median earnings

Merritt College is a public certificate-granting institution in Oakland, California (large city setting), enrolling 5,288 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 5,288 undergradsLarge cityCCCAANear the coast

About Oakland, California

Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. The earliest known inhabitants of the area were the Huchiun natives, who lived there for thousands of years. The Huchiun belonged to a linguistic grouping later called the Ohlone (a Miwok word meaning "western people"). In 2013, Oakland was designated as one of America's top twelve art communities, recognizing Downtown (including Uptown), Chinatown, Old Oakland, and Jack London Square as communities "that have most successfully combined art, artists and venues for creativity and expression with independent businesses, retail shops and restaurants, and a walkable lifestyle to make vibrant neighborhoods." (Wikipedia)

Setting: Large city
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 14 miles to San Francisco, CA
To the ocean: 3 miles
Nearest airport: 6 miles to Oakland San Francisco Bay (OAK) · major hub

How Merritt College compares

#53 · Cheapest Community Colleges

Graduation rate26%

Higher than 9% · #369 of 382 in California

First-year retention55%

Higher than 15%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$44,392

Higher than 82% · #77 of 326 in California

Average net price$14,021

Cheaper than 54% · #136 cheapest of 377 in California

Student–faculty ratio33 : 1

Lower than 3%

Undergraduate enrollment5,288

Larger than 92%

Percentiles compare Merritt College with the nation's 3,519 two-year and certificate schools, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count two-year and certificate schools in California.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women3,63669%
Men1,65231%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White18%
Black24%
Hispanic29%
Asian16%
Other or multiracial12%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 5,288
Student–faculty ratio: 33 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 11%
First-generation students: 55%
Students over 25: 51%
Median family income: $13,204
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $109,800

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

Cost

In-state tuition: $1,258
Out-of-state tuition: $9,898
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,492
Total cost of attendance: $21,424
Average net price: $14,021

Outcomes

Graduated: 26%
First-year retention: 55%
Transferred to another college: 15%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $36,329
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $44,392
Median debt at graduation: —
Students with federal loans: 1%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 19%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

26%

First-generation

10%

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: Free
Athletics: CCCAA
Varsity athletes: 92 (59 men · 33 women)

Varsity sports (3)

Soccer40

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)27

Basketball25

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

Campus safety

Safety grade: A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students: 0.2 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024): 0
Property offenses (2022–2024): 5

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

1.7reported offenses a year

0 violent a year1.7 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft

1.3

Burglary

0.3

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

$13,744

$30–48k

$14,102

$48–75k

$12,825

$75–110k

$18,528

$110k+

$20,036

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.

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.

of first-years get a grant from the school

$767

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 2% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $767. 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 127 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): $44,392
Typical debt at graduation: —
Debt vs. one year's pay: —
Out-earn a HS grad: 44%

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

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

$43,473

Men

$46,582

Men out-earn women by $3,109 (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: 75°F
Winter low: 45°F
Annual rain: 22.6″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Oakland Museum, CA US station (5.3 mi from campus).

What Merritt College graduates study — and earn

Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesCert.

201 grads— 1 yr$39k 5 yr— debt

201—$38,728—Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

131 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

131———Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesCert.

78 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

78———Social Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

76 grads— 1 yr$47k 5 yr— debt

76—$47,026—Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesAssoc.

45 grads— 1 yr$34k 5 yr— debt

45—$33,629—Biological and Physical SciencesAssoc.

34 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

34———Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

28 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

28———Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralCert.

25 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

25———Applied Horticulture and Horticultural Business ServicesCert.

24 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

24———Criminal Justice and CorrectionsAssoc.

21 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

21———Legal Support ServicesCert.

20 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

20———Psychology, GeneralAssoc.

18 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

18———

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 Merritt College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Merritt College side by side →

College of Marin

Public

Kentfield, California · Large suburb · 14 mi to San Francisco

Students: 4,042
Tuition: $2k
Transfer: 17%
Earnings: $43k

Coastline Community College

Public

Fountain Valley, California · Small city · 29 mi to Los Angeles

Students: 7,393
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 14%
Earnings: $44k

Cuesta College

Public

San Luis Obispo, California · Fringe rural · 86 mi to Santa Barbara

Students: 7,180
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 10%
Earnings: $46k

Crafton Hills College

Public

Yucaipa, California · Large suburb · 16 mi to Riverside

Students: 5,687
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 9%
Earnings: $43k

Monterey Peninsula College

Public

Monterey, California · Midsize suburb · 52 mi to San Jose

Students: 5,624
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $42k

Cabrillo College

Public

Aptos, California · Midsize suburb · 24 mi to San Jose

Students: 8,002
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 10%
Earnings: $44k

Colleges near Merritt College

Northeastern University Oakland

Oakland, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 464 students

1 mi

Saint Mary's College of California

Moraga, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,947 students

5 mi

Laney College

Oakland, CA · Public · Associate · 6,842 students

5 mi

Lincoln University

Oakland, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 204 students

6 mi

Academy of Chinese Culture and Health Sciences

Oakland, CA · Private nonprofit · Graduate

6 mi

Samuel Merritt University

Oakland, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 718 students

6 mi

College of Alameda

Alameda, CA · Public · Associate · 4,487 students

6 mi

Carrington College-San Leandro Campus

San Leandro, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 326 students

7 mi

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.