West Coast University - Los Angeles
About
West Coast University (WCU) is a private, for-profit university focused on healthcare degrees with campus locations in Los Angeles, Anaheim, and Ontario, California; Richardson, Texas; and Miami, Florida. David Pyle founded American Career College in 1979 under the name of American College of Optics. Originally the school focused only on optical dispensing. In May 1997, Pyle purchased West Coast University, which was chartered by the State of California in 1909, out of bankruptcy, and developed a program for the training of registered nurses.
Admissions & acceptance rate
First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
Non-Pell students graduate at a 20.0-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.
Of 22 Title IV programs, 9 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 13 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing9 · 40.9%
- No Data13 · 59.1%
- 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.
Earnings premium gap
Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.
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.
WASC Senior College and University Commission
Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools
Programmatic accreditations · 13
Action history · 7
- Sep 2024Renewal of AccreditationCommission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the graduate degree levels
- Feb 2020Grant Substantive Change: ProgramWASC Senior College and University Commission
- Jan 2019Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: OtherAmerican Occupational Therapy Association, Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education · Occupational Therapy (OTM) - Programs leading to a Master's Degree
- Nov 2018Grant Substantive Change: OtherAmerican Occupational Therapy Association, Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education · Occupational Therapy (OTM) - Programs leading to a Master's Degree
- Sep 2018Grant Substantive Change: DegreeWASC Senior College and University Commission
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, 7,143 students received $42.0M in Pell grants, alongside $185.2M 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 3,179 borrowers who entered repayment, 4 (0.1%) defaulted within three years — below 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 WCUA
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
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
- Public property1
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.
WCUA vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions WCUA 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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectWest Coast University-Los Angeles | 31% | 92.3% | 2,673 | $51,992 | — |
| 37% | 33.7% | 1,861 | $31,885 | — | |
| — | — | 483 | — | — | |
| — | — | 539 | — | — | |
| 63% | 97.2% | 927 | $27,313 | — | |
| — | — | 193 | — | — | |
| 63% | 67.4% | 765 | $25,884 | — | |
| 50% | 90.9% | 693 | $37,002 | — | |
| 42% | 82.6% | 32,944 | $26,933 | — | |
| 29% | 87.5% | 257 | $32,074 | — | |
| 36% | 78.2% | 1,121 | $15,928 | — | |
| 100% | 100.0% | 724 | — | — | |
| 67% | 81.4% | 2,556 | $19,585 | Doctoral/Professional | |
| — | — | 4,210 | — | R2 Research | |
| — | — | 1,672 | — | — | |
| 54% | 84.3% | 670 | $12,939 | — | |
| 49% | 73.4% | 1,067 | $19,474 | — | |
| 71% | 69.8% | 2,517 | $28,346 | Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs | |
| — | — | 263 | — | — | |
| — | — | 605 | — | — | |
| — | — | 1,926 | — | — | |
| Peer group median | 50% | 82.6% | 927 | $27,123 |
Institutions like WCUA
Explore the federal data for institutions in WCUA's comparison group.
- Florida
AdventHealth University
Grad rate37%Admit rate33.7%Enrollment1,861Net price$31,885View data - Iowa
Allen College
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment483Net price—View data - Missouri
Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment539Net price—View data - Wisconsin
Bellin College
Grad rate63%Admit rate97.2%Enrollment927Net price$27,313View data - Illinois
Blessing Rieman College of Nursing and Health Sciences
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment193Net price—View data - Nebraska
Bryan College of Health Sciences
Grad rate63%Admit rate67.4%Enrollment765Net price$25,884View data - Arizona
Chamberlain University-Arizona
Grad rate50%Admit rate90.9%Enrollment693Net price$37,002View data - Illinois
Chamberlain University-Illinois
Grad rate42%Admit rate82.6%Enrollment32,944Net price$26,933View data - Ohio
Chamberlain University-Ohio
Grad rate29%Admit rate87.5%Enrollment257Net price$32,074View data - Nebraska
Clarkson College
Grad rate36%Admit rate78.2%Enrollment1,121Net price$15,928View data - Missouri
Cox College
Grad rate100%Admit rate100.0%Enrollment724Net price—View data - Doctoral/ProfessionalNew York
D'Youville University
Grad rate67%Admit rate81.4%Enrollment2,556Net price$19,585View data - R2 ResearchCalifornia
Loma Linda University
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment4,210Net price—View data - Massachusetts
MGH Institute of Health Professions
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment1,672Net price—View data - Ohio
Mount Carmel College of Nursing
Grad rate54%Admit rate84.3%Enrollment670Net price$12,939View data - Nebraska
Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health
Grad rate49%Admit rate73.4%Enrollment1,067Net price$19,474View data - Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger ProgramsMassachusetts
Regis College
Grad rate71%Admit rate69.8%Enrollment2,517Net price$28,346View data - Illinois
Saint Anthony College of Nursing
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment263Net price—View data - Illinois
Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment605Net price—View data - California
Samuel Merritt University
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment1,926Net price—View data
Campuses
The 5 campuses that make up West Coast University-Los Angeles.
WCUA Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The page provides links to different resources available at West Coast University, such as program brochures, BPPE reports, and various degree programs. It includes contact information with a phone number, but not much specific information about the Office of Institutional Research itself.
Visit IR office pageReports & documents (1)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
Frequently asked questions about West Coast University-Los Angeles
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about WCUA.
What is the acceptance rate at West Coast University-Los Angeles?
What is the graduation rate at West Coast University-Los Angeles?
How many students attend West Coast University-Los Angeles?
What is the average net price at West Coast University-Los Angeles?
What is the yield rate at West Coast University-Los Angeles?
Where is West Coast University-Los Angeles located?
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