Public · Community college
Santa Barbara City College
Santa Barbara, California · Small city
- 25%
- Transfer rate
- $11,315
- Avg net price
- 34%
- Grad / completion
- $47,647
- Median earnings
Santa Barbara City College is a public associate-granting institution in Santa Barbara, California (small city setting), enrolling 9,889 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.
About Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Evidence of human habitation of the area begins at least 13,000 years ago. Santa Barbara contains numerous performing art venues, including the 2,000-seat Arlington Theatre, which is the largest indoor performance venue in Santa Barbara and the site of the annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small city
- Highest degree offered
- Associate
- Nearest big city
- 1 mile to Santa Barbara, CA
- To the ocean
- < 1 mile
- Nearest airport
- 8 miles to Santa Barbara (SBA)
How Santa Barbara City College compares
Higher than 18% · #343 of 382 in California
Higher than 33%
Higher than 88% · #54 of 326 in California
Cheaper than 65% · #105 cheapest of 377 in California
Lower than 36%
Lower than 16%
Larger than 96%
Percentiles compare Santa Barbara City 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
- Women5,38154%
- Men4,50846%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White41%
- Black2.5%
- Hispanic38%
- Asian4.7%
- Other or multiracial14%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 9,889
- Student–faculty ratio
- 24 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 18%
- First-generation students
- 46%
- Students over 25
- 25%
- Median family income
- $22,910
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $113,814
- Endowment
- $63,794,890
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 2,644 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From California80%
- Other U.S. states9.9%
- International9.6%
Most first-years stay in state — Santa Barbara City College draws overwhelmingly from California.
10% 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
- $1,240
- Out-of-state tuition
- $10,432
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $1,062
- Total cost of attendance
- $20,394
- Average net price
- $11,315
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
- 34%
- First-year retention
- 65%
- Transferred to another college
- 25%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $35,744
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $47,647
- Median debt at graduation
- $11,000
- Students with federal loans
- 4%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 35%
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
- No
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- CCCAA
- Varsity athletes
- 356 (213 men · 143 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 (12)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.5 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 6
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 12
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 4 campuses (12,334 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.
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: 1% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,200. 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 1,895 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)
- $47,647
- Typical debt at graduation
- $11,000
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 23%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 48%
Typical debt would take roughly 2.3 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 $2,224 (5%) 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
- 46°F
- Annual rain
- 19″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Santa Barbara, CA US station (1 mi from campus).
What Santa Barbara City College 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 Santa Barbara City College
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Santa Barbara City College side by side →
Cuesta College
San Luis Obispo, California · Fringe rural · 86 mi to Santa Barbara
- Students
- 7,180
- Tuition
- $1k
- Transfer
- 10%
- Earnings
- $46k
Chabot College
Hayward, California · Large suburb · 19 mi to San Francisco
- Students
- 11,392
- Tuition
- $1k
- Transfer
- 10%
- Earnings
- $48k
Los Angeles Pierce College
Woodland Hills, California · Large city · 21 mi to Los Angeles
- Students
- 13,436
- Tuition
- $1k
- Transfer
- 9%
- Earnings
- $45k
Los Angeles Valley College
Valley Glen, California · Large city · 13 mi to Los Angeles
- Students
- 12,601
- Tuition
- $1k
- Transfer
- 9%
- Earnings
- $43k
Evergreen Valley College
San Jose, California · Large city · 7 mi to San Jose
- Students
- 7,688
- Tuition
- $1k
- Transfer
- 8%
- Earnings
- $53k
Rio Hondo College
Whittier, California · Fringe rural · 12 mi to Los Angeles
- Students
- 15,684
- Tuition
- $1k
- Transfer
- 4%
- Earnings
- $45k
Colleges near Santa Barbara City College
Antioch University-Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 55 students
The Colleges of Law at Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Fielding Graduate University
Santa Barbara, CA · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Westmont College
Santa Barbara, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,302 students
Pacifica Graduate Institute
Santa Barbara CA, CA · Private for-profit · Graduate
University of California-Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA · Public · Bachelor's · 23,113 students
Lu Ross Academy
Ventura, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 229 students
Ventura College
Ventura, CA · Public · Associate · 10,150 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.