Golden West College
About
Golden West College is a community college located in Huntington Beach, California, founded in 1965 and part of the Coast Community College District. The college spans 122 acres and offers programs focused on transferring to four-year universities, earning associate degrees, and career and technical education, having awarded over 5,000 degrees and certificates in Spring 2023.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.
Program outcomes
Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
Of 151 Title IV programs, 1 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 149 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing1 · 0.7%
- No Data149 · 98.7%
- Failing1 · 0.7%
Severity spectrum
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.
Near the line (±5%)
Programs within five points of the pass line, one cohort year from flipping.
Debt vs earnings
Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
Programmatic accreditations · 1
Action history · 5
- Sep 2023Grant Substantive Change: OtherAccreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
- Sep 2022Renewal of AccreditationAccreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
- Jun 2019Renewal of AccreditationAccrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
- Mar 2018Grant Substantive Change: OtherAccreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
- Jun 2015Accreditation Reaffirmed: Warning RemovedAccrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
Tuition & cost
What families actually pay, broken down by family income.
Net price by family income
Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.
Federal aid volume & trends
Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.
In AY 2024–25, 2,918 students received $14.1M in Pell grants, alongside $1.1M in federal Direct Loans.
Pell recipients · 5-year trend
Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25
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.
Student loan default rate
The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.
Of 203 borrowers who entered repayment, 8 (3.9%) defaulted within three years — above the 2.3% national rate.
Default rate vs national, by cohort
* 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.
Academic programs at Golden West College
Top program areas ranked by completions.
Top program families by completions
Enrollment trends & demographics
Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.
Gender split
Race / ethnicity composition
Athletics & Title IX gender equity
How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.
Men vs women · spending splits
Sport-by-sport · 11
Campus safety & crime statistics
Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.
3-year trend
Criminal offenses by type
By location
- On campus34
- Non-campus14
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
- National origin1
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Golden West College vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Golden West College selected for federal comparison reporting.
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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectGolden West College | 49% | — | 10,721 | $2,861 | Community College |
Allan Hancock College | — | — | 11,463 | $4,638 | Community College |
Central New Mexico Community College | — | — | 19,342 | $3,454 | Community College |
Central Piedmont Community College | — | — | 20,375 | $3,660 | Community College |
Chandler-Gilbert Community College | — | — | 15,085 | $12,653 | Community College |
College of the Canyons | — | — | 18,075 | $2,114 | Community College |
Cuesta College | — | — | 11,283 | $12,898 | Community College |
CUNY Kingsborough Community College | — | — | 18,165 | $5,436 | Community College |
East Los Angeles College | — | — | 33,677 | $9,791 | Community College |
Eastern Gateway Community College | — | — | — | $4,181 | Community College |
Elgin Community College | — | — | 10,251 | $5,778 | Community College |
Folsom Lake College | — | — | 11,098 | $3,661 | Community College |
Howard Community College | — | — | 8,643 | $10,225 | Community College |
Irvine Valley College | — | — | 13,018 | $1,886 | Community College |
Los Angeles Pierce College | — | — | 16,906 | $11,196 | Community College |
Los Angeles Valley College | — | — | 15,999 | $10,200 | Community College |
Mesa Community College | — | — | 17,077 | $13,438 | Community College |
Middlesex College | — | — | 12,044 | $6,000 | Community College |
Montgomery College | — | — | 18,835 | $7,240 | Community College |
Norco College | — | — | 11,351 | $2,845 | Community College |
Northern Virginia Community College | — | — | 56,457 | $8,554 | Community College |
Northwest Vista College | — | — | 20,060 | $4,546 | Community College |
Oakland Community College | — | — | 15,287 | $4,568 | Community College |
Phoenix College | — | — | 10,660 | $11,728 | Community College |
Portland Community College | — | — | 20,861 | $9,920 | Community College |
Prince George's Community College | — | — | 11,473 | $10,857 | Community College |
Saddleback College | — | — | 20,764 | $2,976 | Community College |
Salt Lake Community College | — | — | 27,437 | $7,661 | Community College |
Santa Rosa Junior College | — | — | 17,854 | $5,541 | Community College |
SUNY Westchester Community College | — | — | 9,359 | $9,301 | Community College |
| Peer group median | 49% | — | 15,999 | $5,889 |
Golden West College Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The Office of Research, Planning, and Institutional Effectiveness (ORPIE) provides services that help campus leaders make more informed decisions to improve processes, programs, and services that impact student learning and success.
Visit IR office page- Lauren Davis SosenkoDean of Institutional Effectiveness
- C.J. Bishop, Ph.D.Senior Research Analyst
- Teresa RodriguezAdministrative Assistant
- Jeannette Jaramillo, MPPSenior Research Analyst - Equity
Reports & documents (3)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DashboardDashboardgoldenwestcollege.edu
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- Strategic planGolden West College Strategic Plan 2025-20292025Golden West College's Strategic Plan for 2025-2029 builds on the framework of the Vision 2030 Comprehensive Master Plan with a focused approach on seven strategic goals. These goals emphasize enrollment growth, equity and success, timely student completion, workforce preparation, and the enhancement of facilities, professional development, and communication. The plan sets ambitious targets, such as significant increases in enrollment metrics and student success outcomes, aligning with state and institutional objectives.goldenwestcollege.edu
Notable alumni of Golden West College (2)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- Wendi McLendon-CoveyActing
- Michelle PfeifferActing
Frequently asked questions about Golden West College
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Golden West College.
What is the graduation rate at Golden West College?
How many students attend Golden West College?
What is the average net price at Golden West College?
Where is Golden West College located?
Who runs Institutional Research at Golden West College?
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