Saddleback College
About
Saddleback College is a public community college in Mission Viejo, California. It is part of the California Community College system and awards over 300 associate degrees, academic certificates, and occupational skills awards in 190 programs. Established in 1968, Saddleback is the oldest and southernmost institution governed by the South Orange County Community College District. Saddleback College is named for the saddle between the twin peaks of Santiago Peak and Modjeska Peak in the Cleveland National Forest.
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 170 Title IV programs, 0 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 170 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing0 · 0.0%
- No Data170 · 100.0%
- Failing0 · 0.0%
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.
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
- Jun 2024Renewal of AccreditationAccrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
- Sep 2019Renewal of AccreditationAccreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
- Jan 2019Renewal of AccreditationAccrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
- Jan 2019Renewal of AccreditationAccrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
- Jun 2017Renewal of AccreditationAccrediting 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, 4,176 students received $18.9M in Pell grants, alongside $2.0M 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 241 borrowers who entered repayment, 6 (2.4%) 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 Saddleback 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 · 14
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 campus6
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Saddleback College vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Saddleback 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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectSaddleback College | 48% | — | 20,764 | $2,976 | 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 |
Golden West College | — | — | 10,721 | $2,861 | 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 |
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 | 48% | — | 15,999 | $5,889 |
Saddleback College Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
Reports & documents (1)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
Notable alumni of Saddleback College (14)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- Heather C. Allen
- Mike Bullock
- Kevin FaganCartoonist
- Robin Follman
- Caesar Frazier
- Brandon Hammond
- Yolanda Hughes-Heying
- Savannah LaBrant
- Ben Maller
- Allen Meadors
- Trenten MerrillAthletics
- Anoeschka von Meck
Frequently asked questions about Saddleback College
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Saddleback College.
What is the graduation rate at Saddleback College?
How many students attend Saddleback College?
What is the average net price at Saddleback College?
Where is Saddleback College located?
Who runs Institutional Research at Saddleback College?
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