Public · Community college

MiraCosta College

Oceanside, California · Large suburb

10%
Transfer rate
$7,339
Avg net price
41%
Grad / completion
$43,845
Median earnings

MiraCosta College is a public associate-granting institution in Oceanside, California (large suburb setting), enrolling 10,278 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 10,278 undergradsLarge suburbCCCAANear the coast

About Oceanside, California

Oceanside is a beach city in the North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. The first European explorers arrived in 1769. The Oceanside Pier, first built in 1888 (and now in its sixth incarnation), is one of the longest wooden piers on the western United States coastline, at 1,942 feet (592 m). (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To the ocean
4 miles
Nearest airport
4 miles to McClellan-Palomar (CLD)

How MiraCosta College compares

Graduation rate41%

Higher than 27% · #293 of 382 in California

First-year retention91%

Higher than 83%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$43,845

Higher than 81% · #82 of 326 in California

Average net price$7,339

Cheaper than 81% · #69 cheapest of 377 in California

Median debt at graduation$9,000

Lower than 66%

Student–faculty ratio18 : 1

Lower than 39%

Undergraduate enrollment10,278

Larger than 97%

Percentiles compare MiraCosta 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

10,278undergrads
  • Women6,28561%
  • Men3,99339%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White33%
  • Black3.6%
  • Hispanic45%
  • Asian7.0%
  • Other or multiracial11%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
10,278
Student–faculty ratio
18 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
27%
First-generation students
51%
Students over 25
36%
Median family income
$19,811
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$134,613
Endowment
$15,425,731

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 2,220 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From California94%
  • Other U.S. states2.8%
  • International2.9%

Most first-years stay in state — MiraCosta College draws overwhelmingly from California.

3% 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.

Cost

In-state tuition
$1,158
Out-of-state tuition
$9,750
Room & board
Books & supplies
$1,062
Total cost of attendance
$15,531
Average net price
$7,339

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)
41%
Graduated on time (4 years)
91%
First-year retention
91%
Transferred to another college
10%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$37,965
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$43,845
Median debt at graduation
$9,000
Students with federal loans
2%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
42%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
91%
First-generation
4%

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
114 (52 men · 62 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 (4)

Soccer56
Basketball29
Beach Volleyball15
Volleyball14

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.3 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
4
Property offenses (2022–2024)
7

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 4 campuses (11,478 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.

3.7reported offenses a year
1.3 violent a year2.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
2.0
Rape
0.7
Fondling
0.3
Aggravated assault
0.3
Motor vehicle theft
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
$6,535
$30–48k
$5,560
$48–75k
$9,222
$75–110k
$11,172
$110k+
$12,855

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
$36,888

$9,222/year × about 4.0 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.

1%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$1,075
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 1% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,075. 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 1,073 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)
$43,845
Typical debt at graduation
$9,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
21%
Out-earn a HS grad
40%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.1 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
$41,122
Men
$48,522

Men out-earn women by $7,400 (18%) 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
78°F
Winter low
40°F
Annual rain
11.9″

Average temperature

HighLow
30°60°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.01.42.9JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Oceanside Muni AP, CA US station (3.4 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 MiraCosta College

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

Colleges near MiraCosta College

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.