Public · Community college

Porterville College

Porterville, California · Small suburb

7%
Transfer rate: $12,301
Avg net price: 34%
Grad / completion: $36,328
Median earnings

Porterville College is a public associate-granting institution in Porterville, California (small suburb setting), enrolling 2,834 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 2,834 undergradsSmall suburbCCCAA

About Porterville, California

Porterville is a city at the base of Southern Sierra Nevada mountains on the eastern side of San Joaquin Valley, in Tulare County, California, United States. During California's Spanish period, the San Joaquin Valley was considered a remote region of little value. Emigrants skirted the eastern foothills in the vicinity of Porterville as early as 1826. The sheriff in Big Top Pee-wee (1988) received a report from Porterville about a windstorm approaching Pee-wee Herman's local town. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Small suburb
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 47 miles to Bakersfield, CA
To the ocean: 111 miles
Nearest airport: 43 miles to Meadows Field (BFL)

How Porterville College compares

Graduation rate34%

Higher than 18% · #339 of 382 in California

First-year retention51%

Higher than 12%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$36,328

Higher than 54% · #196 of 326 in California

Average net price$12,301

Cheaper than 61% · #117 cheapest of 377 in California

Student–faculty ratio25 : 1

Lower than 12%

Undergraduate enrollment2,834

Larger than 85%

Percentiles compare Porterville 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

Women1,70860%
Men1,12640%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White12%
Black1.6%
Hispanic79%
Asian2.6%
Other or multiracial4.7%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 2,834
Student–faculty ratio: 25 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 35%
First-generation students: 63%
Students over 25: 26%
Median family income: $18,303
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $103,338
Endowment: $4,251,141

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

Cost

In-state tuition: $1,438
Out-of-state tuition: $11,308
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,062
Total cost of attendance: $20,730
Average net price: $12,301

Outcomes

Graduated: 34%
First-year retention: 51%
Transferred to another college: 7%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $30,202
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $36,328
Median debt at graduation: —
Students with federal loans: 0%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: No
Application fee: Free
Athletics: CCCAA
Varsity athletes: 170 (91 men · 79 women)

Varsity sports (8)

Baseball45

Basketball32

Tennis21

Track and Field (Outdoor)17

Cross Country16

Softball15

Soccer12

Volleyball12

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

Campus safety

Safety grade: B
Reported offenses per 1,000 students: 1.4 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024): 2
Property offenses (2022–2024): 18

Reported offenses in an average year

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

6.7reported offenses a year

0.7 violent a year6.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary

3.3

Motor vehicle theft

2.7

Fondling

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

$12,113

$30–48k

$11,641

$48–75k

$13,228

$75–110k

$16,825

$110k+

—

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

$638

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 5% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $638. 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 348 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): $36,328
Typical debt at graduation: —
Debt vs. one year's pay: —
Out-earn a HS grad: 34%

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

$32,652

Men

$42,682

Men out-earn women by $10,030 (31%) 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: 98°F
Winter low: 39°F
Annual rain: 11″
Annual snow: 0.2″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Porterville, CA US station (1.3 mi from campus).

What Porterville College graduates study — and earn

Social Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

142 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

142———Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

131 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

131———Biological and Physical SciencesAssoc.

80 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

80———Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

38 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

38———Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesAssoc.

34 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

34———Criminal Justice and CorrectionsAssoc.

25 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

25———Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesCert.

20 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

20———Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssoc.

18 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

18———Communication and Media StudiesCert.

17 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

17———Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

16 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

16———SociologyAssoc.

16 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

16———HistoryAssoc.

15 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

15———

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 Porterville College

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

Barstow Community College

Public

Barstow, California · Distant town · 65 mi to Riverside

Students: 2,657
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 8%
Earnings: $35k

Compton College

Public

Compton, California · Large suburb · 12 mi to Los Angeles

Students: 3,142
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 10%
Earnings: $34k

Coalinga College

Public

Coalinga, California · Remote town · 52 mi to Fresno

Students: 2,522
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $38k

Lassen Community College

Public

Susanville, California · Remote town · 76 mi to Reno

Students: 1,741
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 14%
Earnings: $36k

Columbia College

Public

Sonora, California · Fringe rural · 49 mi to Stockton

Students: 1,984
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 7%
Earnings: $39k

Feather River Community College District

Public

Quincy, California · Remote rural · 68 mi to Reno

Students: 1,828
Tuition: $1k
Transfer: 21%
Earnings: $38k

Colleges near Porterville College

Milan Institute-Visalia

Visalia, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 635 students

23 mi

Estes Institute of Cosmetology Arts and Science

Visalia, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 41 students

25 mi

College of the Sequoias

Visalia, CA · Public · Certificate · 11,562 students

25 mi

San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia

Visalia, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 2,207 students

28 mi

Advanced Career Institute

Visalia, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 664 students

29 mi

Lawrence & Company College of Cosmetology

Hanford, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 34 students

40 mi

California Aeronautical University

Bakersfield, CA · Private for-profit · Bachelor's · 347 students

42 mi

Bakersfield College

Bakersfield, CA · Public · Associate · 17,280 students

44 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.