Colleges

Private for-profit · Community college

Unitek College

South San Francisco, California · Small city

#2 for grad earnings in California
1%
Transfer rate
$23,676
Avg net price
73%
Grad / completion
$87,877
Median earnings

Unitek College is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in South San Francisco, California (small city setting), enrolling 191 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

Private for-profitSmall · 191 undergradsSmall cityNear the coast

About South San Francisco, California

South San Francisco is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. Parts of what is now South San Francisco have been populated for more than 5,000 years. The northern San Francisco peninsula was inhabited by the Ramaytush, a linguistic sub-group of Ohlone people. South San Francisco does not levy gross receipts or payroll taxes, although companies have to pay a business fee of up to $125,000 per year. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Small city
Highest degree offered
Certificate
To the ocean
2 miles
Nearest airport
5 miles to San Francisco (SFO) · major hub

How Unitek College compares

Graduation rate73%

Higher than 66% · #143 of 382 in California

First-year retention94%

Higher than 87%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$87,877

Higher than 99% · #2 of 326 in California

Average net price$23,676

Cheaper than 21% · #240 cheapest of 377 in California

Median debt at graduation$10,700

Lower than 38%

Student–faculty ratio13 : 1

Lower than 67%

Undergraduate enrollment191

Larger than 44%

Percentiles compare Unitek 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

191undergrads
  • Women15983%
  • Men3217%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White2.1%
  • Black4.7%
  • Hispanic23%
  • Asian35%
  • Other or multiracial35%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
191
Student–faculty ratio
13 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
42%
First-generation students
39%
Students over 25
55%
Median family income
$30,776

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

Cost

In-state tuition
—
Room & board
—
Total cost of attendance
—
Average net price
$23,676

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
73%
First-year retention
94%
Transferred to another college
1%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$69,466
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$87,877
Median debt at graduation
$10,700
Students with federal loans
41%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
60%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
73%
Low-income (Pell)
78%
First-generation
78%

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

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%.

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
$21,780
$30–48k
$23,161
$48–75k
$26,585
$75–110k
$27,497
$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?

Unitek College funds essentially no grants of its own — almost all aid here comes from federal (Pell), state, or outside sources rather than the school's own discount. Its sticker price is what it is.

Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid, 2022–23 full-time first-year undergraduates.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$87,877
Typical debt at graduation
$10,700
Debt vs. one year's pay
12%
Out-earn a HS grad
—

Typical debt would take roughly 1.2 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Strong value

Graduates here tend to earn well relative to what they borrow — typical debt pays back fast, and most out-earn a high-school graduate.

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.

Campus climate

Summer high
72°F
Winter low
45°F
Annual rain
31.9″

Average temperature

HighLow
40°60°80°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.03.36.6JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Pacifica 4 Sse, CA US station (4.6 mi from campus).

What Unitek College graduates study — and earn

Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants
130 grads$66k 1 yr$74k 5 yr$17k debt
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services
84 grads$35k 1 yr$37k 5 yr$8k debt

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 Unitek College

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

Unitek College

For-profit

Hayward, California · Large suburb · 18 mi to San Francisco

Students
284
Tuition
—
Transfer
2%
Earnings
$88k

Urban Barber College

For-profit

Concord, California · Large suburb · 25 mi to San Francisco

Students
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Tuition
—
Transfer
0%
Earnings
—

Bay Area Medical Academy

For-profit

San Francisco, California · Large city · 1 mi to San Francisco

Students
209
Tuition
—
Transfer
0%
Earnings
—

Pacific College

For-profit

Costa Mesa, California · Midsize city · 33 mi to Los Angeles

Students
225
Tuition
—
Transfer
0%
Earnings
$70k

Brownson Technical School

For-profit

Anaheim, California · Large city · 25 mi to Los Angeles

Students
307
Tuition
—
Transfer
0%
Earnings
$69k

MIXED Institute of Cosmetology & Barber

For-profit

Sacramento, California · Large suburb · 7 mi to Sacramento

Students
138
Tuition
—
Transfer
0%
Earnings
—

Colleges near Unitek College

Skyline College

San Bruno, CA · Public · Associate · 7,620 students

2 mi

Hilltop Beauty School

Daly City, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 77 students

3 mi

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA · Public · Bachelor's · 18,639 students

5 mi

City College of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA · Public · Certificate · 17,348 students

5 mi

University of California-San Francisco

San Francisco, CA · Public · Graduate

7 mi

San Francisco School of Massage & Bodywork

San Francisco, CA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 139 students

8 mi

California College of the Arts

San Francisco, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 990 students

8 mi

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 5,287 students

8 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.