Community CollegePublic

Cuesta College

San Luis Obispo, California·Public, 2-year·Far West·cuesta.edu
6-yr Graduation
48%
—
Total enrollment
11,283
peer median 15,999
Avg net price
$12,898
+$7.0k vs Community College
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AboutOutcomesProgram outcomesAccreditationCostFederal aidLoan defaultsAcademic programsEnrollment trendsAthleticsCampus safetyFacultyPeersIR OfficeDocumentsAlumni

About

Cuesta College is a public community college located in San Luis Obispo County, California. It was founded in 1963 and serves approximately 10,000 students. The college offers a wide range of academic programs, including associate degrees and transfer pathways, with notable focus areas in healthcare and vocational training.

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

IPEDS
Overall completion
48%
Full-time retention
73%

Pell equity

45.0pp gap
Pell recipients
30%
Non-Pell
75%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 45.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

FVT/GE

Of 114 Title IV programs, 3 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 111 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
114
Passing
3
2.6% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

114programs
  • Passing3 · 2.6%
  • No Data111 · 97.4%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
0
Safe
2
No data
111

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

3
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+8.7%
$39,218 vs $36,082
Business Administration Management and Operations
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+53.9%
$55,527 vs $36,082
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+212.4%
$112,730 vs $36,082

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

DAPIP
AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

Accredited since 1968Next review Oct 2027

Action history · 2

  1. Feb 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
  2. Feb 2015Renewal of Accreditation
    Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

College Scorecard

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$11,156
$30–48k$12,451
$48–75k$14,399
$75–110k$17,301
$110k+$19,283

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$12,898
+$7,009vs Community College median $5,889
Federal loans
2.1%
In-state tuition
$1,340
Out-of-state
$11,000

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

Federal Student Aid

In AY 2024–25, 2,319 students received $10.0M in Pell grants, alongside $1.5M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
2,319
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$10.0M
$9,986,482 total
Direct Loans
$1.5M
338 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

2k
’20
2k
’21
2k
’22
2k
’23
2k
’24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$516K
155 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$750K
167 loan awards
Parent PLUS$232K
16 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Cohort Default Rate

Of 365 borrowers who entered repayment, 8 (2.1%) defaulted within three years — below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
2.1%
-0.2pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
365
Defaulted
8
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
6.5%
2017
10.1%
2018
8.7%
2019
2.1%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Cuesta College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

IPEDS
Distinct CIP programs101
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,817 total completions
01Liberal Arts
93851.6%
02Health Professions
18110.0%
03Social Sciences
1649.0%
04Business
1618.9%
05Psychology
1347.4%
06Communication
744.1%
07Family/Consumer Sci
543.0%
08Visual/Performing Arts
522.9%
09Education
331.8%
10Security/Protective
261.4%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

IPEDS
Fall total
11,283
12-mo unduplicated
14,945
Undergraduate
14,945
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
49%7,269
Women
51%7,676

Race / ethnicity composition

White
49.6%
Hispanic
35.4%
Two or more
6.7%
Asian
3.1%
Black
2.4%
Unknown
1.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.5%
Non-resident
0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.3%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

EADA
Athletes
219
122 M · 97 W
Women athletes
44.3%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$1.6M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$0
$0
Head-coach salaries
$20K
$18K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 11

Track and Field (Outdoor)
22 M · 17 W
$56K
Baseball
37 M · —
$81K
Swimming
24 M · 11 W
$74K
Water Polo
21 M · 11 W
$108K
Basketball
17 M · 14 W
$113K
Soccer
— · 19 W
$27K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Clery Act
Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
0.00
0 offenses · 9,908 students

3-year trend

0.002 yrs ago0.211 yr ago0.00Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
2
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
1
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

No criminal offenses reported.

By location

0total

    VAWA offenses

    0
    Domestic violence
    0
    Dating violence
    0
    Stalking
    0 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

    Hate crimes by bias

    No hate crimes reported.

    Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

    CategoryArrestsReferrals
    Weapons00
    Drugs00
    Liquor00

    Residence-hall fires

    No residence-hall fires reported.

    Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

    Student-faculty ratio

    Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

    IPEDS
    Student-to-faculty
    27.0:1
    Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
    139

    Cuesta College vs Peer comparison

    The peer institutions Cuesta College selected for federal comparison reporting.

    IPEDS
    GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
    This institutionPeer median

    A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

    Carnegie
    SubjectCuesta College
    		48%—11,283$12,898Community College
    Allan Hancock College
    		——11,463$4,638Community College
    Central New Mexico Community College
    		——19,342$3,454Community College
    Central Piedmont Community College
    		——20,375$3,660Community College
    Chandler-Gilbert Community College
    		——15,085$12,653Community College
    College of the Canyons
    		——18,075$2,114Community College
    CUNY Kingsborough Community College
    		——18,165$5,436Community College
    East Los Angeles College
    		——33,677$9,791Community College
    Eastern Gateway Community College
    		———$4,181Community College
    Elgin Community College
    		——10,251$5,778Community College
    Folsom Lake College
    		——11,098$3,661Community College
    Golden West College
    		——10,721$2,861Community College
    Howard Community College
    		——8,643$10,225Community College
    Irvine Valley College
    		——13,018$1,886Community College
    Los Angeles Pierce College
    		——16,906$11,196Community College
    Los Angeles Valley College
    		——15,999$10,200Community College
    Mesa Community College
    		——17,077$13,438Community College
    Middlesex College
    		——12,044$6,000Community College
    Montgomery College
    		——18,835$7,240Community College
    Norco College
    		——11,351$2,845Community College
    Northern Virginia Community College
    		——56,457$8,554Community College
    Northwest Vista College
    		——20,060$4,546Community College
    Oakland Community College
    		——15,287$4,568Community College
    Phoenix College
    		——10,660$11,728Community College
    Portland Community College
    		——20,861$9,920Community College
    Prince George's Community College
    		——11,473$10,857Community College
    Saddleback College
    		——20,764$2,976Community College
    Salt Lake Community College
    		——27,437$7,661Community College
    Santa Rosa Junior College
    		——17,854$5,541Community College
    SUNY Westchester Community College
    		——9,359$9,301Community College
    Peer group median48%—15,999$5,889

    Cuesta College Institutional Research office

    The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.

    Office
    Office of Institutional Research
    Phone
    (805) 546-3100
    Address
    3000 Education Dr., San Luis Obispo, CA 93405

    The Office of Institutional Research assists the college in completing its mission through regular evaluative assessment, analysis of empirical data to inform ongoing and integrated institutional planning and policy development, supports internal program review and college accreditation, and contributes appropriate information to state and federal data consortia.

    Visit IR office page
    Team
    1 member
    • Aimee La Rue
      Institutional Research Analyst

    Reports & documents (2)

    Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.

    Notable alumni of Cuesta College (5)

    A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.

    • Katcho Achadjian
      Politics
    • Jay Asher
      Literature
    • Carissa Phelps
      Social Activism
    • Jake Shields
      Athletics
    • Gabrielle Union
      Entertainment

    Frequently asked questions about Cuesta College

    Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Cuesta College.

    What is the graduation rate at Cuesta College?

    Cuesta College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 48% per the latest IPEDS.

    How many students attend Cuesta College?

    Cuesta College reports a total enrollment of 11,283 students per the latest IPEDS.

    What is the average net price at Cuesta College?

    The average net price at Cuesta College is $12,898 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

    Where is Cuesta College located?

    Cuesta College is located in San Luis Obispo, California 93403-8106.

    Who runs Institutional Research at Cuesta College?

    Cuesta College's IR work is done by the Office of Institutional Research.

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