Community CollegePublicHSI

Orange Coast College

Costa Mesa, California·Public, 2-year·Far West·orangecoastcollege.edu
6-yr Graduation
48%
Total enrollment
17,096
peer median 17,333
Avg net price
$4,754
-$716 vs Community College
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About

Orange Coast College (OCC) is a public community college in Costa Mesa in Orange County, California. It was founded in 1947, with its first classes opening in the fall of 1948. It provides Associate of Art and Associate of Science degrees, certificates of achievement, and lower-division classes transferable to other colleges and universities. The college enrolls approximately 24,000 undergraduate students. In terms of population size, Orange Coast College is the third-largest college in Orange County.

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
48%
Full-time retention
74%

Pell equity

31.0pp gap
Pell recipients
48%
Non-Pell
17%

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 163 Title IV programs, 7 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 156 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
163
Passing
7
4.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

163programs
  • Passing7 · 4.3%
  • No Data156 · 95.7%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
2
Safe
5
No data
156

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.

7
Psychology General
Associate Degree · Psychology
+11.3%
$40,152 vs $36,082
Biological and Physical Sciences
Associate Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
+15.6%
$41,701 vs $36,082
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+28.7%
$46,454 vs $36,082
Communication and Media Studies
Associate Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+49.2%
$53,829 vs $36,082
Business Administration Management and Operations
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+66.8%
$60,193 vs $36,082
Engineering General
Associate Degree · Engineering
+103.0%
$73,237 vs $36,082
Allied Health Diagnostic Intervention and Treatment Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+154.1%
$91,682 vs $36,082

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

1
Allied Health Diagnostic Intervention and Treatment Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
10%
$9,250 debt · $91,682 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

Accredited since 1952Next review Mar 2026

Programmatic accreditations · 3

Action history · 10

  1. Sep 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology · Radiologic Technology (RAD) - Programs for radiographers
  2. Aug 2022Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Assisting (DA)
  3. Aug 2021Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Assisting (DA)
  4. Apr 2021Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Assisting (DA)
  5. Jul 2020Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Assisting (DA)

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$3,105
$30–48k$4,473
$48–75k$7,289
$75–110k$9,230
$110k+$10,872

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

Avg net price
$4,754
-$715vs Community College median $5,470
Federal loans
1.6%
In-state tuition
$1,208
Out-of-state
$9,992

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 5,237 students received $24.8M in Pell grants, alongside $3.4M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
5,237
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$24.8M
$24,753,341 total
Direct Loans
$3.4M
752 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

4k
20
5k
21
5k
22
5k
23
5k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$1.2M
361 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$1.4M
343 loan awards
Parent PLUS$837K
48 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.

Of 411 borrowers who entered repayment, 16 (3.8%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
3.8%
+1.5pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
411
Defaulted
16
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
9.2%
2017
12.7%
2018
12.9%
2019
3.8%
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 Orange Coast College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs127
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,893 total completions
01Business
39020.6%
02Liberal Arts
38020.1%
03Communication
1889.9%
04Psychology
1789.4%
05Social Sciences
1538.1%
06Multi/Interdisciplinary
1417.4%
07Visual/Performing Arts
1387.3%
08Health Professions
1316.9%
09Computer Sciences
1095.8%
10Physical Sciences
854.5%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
17,096
12-mo unduplicated
22,707
Undergraduate
22,707
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
50%11,258
Women
50%11,449

Race / ethnicity composition

Hispanic
36.1%
White
28.6%
Asian
21.6%
Two or more
5.3%
Non-resident
5.2%
Black
1.7%
Unknown
1.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.2%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
637
442 M · 195 W
Women athletes
30.6%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$4.3M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$0
$0
Head-coach salaries
$55K
$62K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 14

Rowing
70 M · 34 W
$577K
Football
88 M ·
$197K
Track and Field (Outdoor)
47 M · 23 W
$289K
Volleyball
48 M · 21 W
$212K
Soccer
40 M · 23 W
$268K
Water Polo
27 M · 27 W
$217K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

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

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
3.13
52 offenses · 16,614 students

3-year trend

1.772 yrs ago3.401 yr ago3.13Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
141
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
169
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
7
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
2

Criminal offenses by type

Aggravated assault
20
Rape
12
Burglary
9
Motor vehicle theft
9
Robbery
2

By location

52total
  • On campus38
  • Non-campus14

Includes 14 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

21
Domestic violence
0
Dating violence
54
Stalking
75 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • National origin2
  • Race1

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons18
Drugs2102
Liquor0208

Residence-hall fires

  • The Harbour Building 31 fire
    CookingDamage $0-$99

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
27.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
248

Orange Coast College vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Orange Coast College selected for federal comparison reporting.

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
SubjectOrange Coast College
48%17,096$4,754Community College
11,720$9,376Community College
18,095$17,225Community College
21,859$693Community College
22,460$5,743Community College
10,429$3,800Community College
14,494$29Community College
12,926$13,306Community College
12,275$5,240Community College
20,123$4,907Community College
14,494$5,699Community College
17,228$6,142Community College
21,664$5,170Community College
25,567$4,154Community College
19,521$8,090Community College
90.8%17,437$10,102Community College
12,075$7,461Community College
14,440$2,755Community College
24,985$5,001Community College
12,472$4,260Community College
13,523$8,165Community College
14,583$742Community College
12,301$5,736Community College
24,597$3,123Community College
21,730$4,026Community College
12,334$10,029Community College
20,986$10,893Community College
19,973$4,882Community College
43,928$6,073Community College
24,609$6,935Community College
Peer group median48%90.8%17,333$5,470

Institutions like Orange Coast College

Explore the federal data for institutions in Orange Coast College's comparison group.

Orange Coast College Institutional Research office

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

Office
Office of Institutional Effectiveness
Reports to Institutional Effectiveness
Email
occresearch [at] occ.cccd.edu
Phone
(714) 432-5072
Address
2701 Fairview Road Costa Mesa, California 92626

The page provides a variety of documents and reports related to institutional effectiveness at Orange Coast College, including the OCC Atlas, educational master plans, and program reviews. It also lists some dashboard links and contact information for the college.

Visit IR office page
Team
9 members
  • Sheri Sterner
    Dean of Research, Planning, and Institutional Effectiveness
  • Alex Buus
    Research Analyst Senior
  • Lucy Grams
    Research Analyst
  • Courtney Youngberg
    Research Analyst Senior
  • Diane Brown
    Institutional Effectiveness Coordinator
  • Laura Behr
    Institutional Effectiveness Coordinator
  • Sherana Polk
    Institutional Effectiveness Coordinator
  • Chi Phan
    Research Professional Expert
  • Kayla LaBounty
    Administrative Assistant I

Reports & documents (4)

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

Notable alumni of Orange Coast College (8)

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

  • Blake Anderson
    Entertainment
  • Scott Aukerman
    Entertainment
  • Eileen Davidson
    Entertainment
  • David Denman
    Entertainment
  • Adam DeVine
    Entertainment
  • Diane Keaton
    Entertainment
  • Brian Krause
    Entertainment
  • Phạm Xuân Ẩn
    Journalism

Frequently asked questions about Orange Coast College

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Orange Coast College.

What is the graduation rate at Orange Coast College?

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

How many students attend Orange Coast College?

Orange Coast College reports a total enrollment of 17,096 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Orange Coast College?

The average net price at Orange Coast College is $4,754 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

Where is Orange Coast College located?

Orange Coast College is located in Costa Mesa, California 92626.

Who runs Institutional Research at Orange Coast College?

Orange Coast College's IR work is done by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, which reports to Institutional Effectiveness.

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