Whittier College
About
Whittier College is a private liberal arts college in Whittier, California, United States. Founded by Quakers in 1887, it is a federally-designated Hispanic-Serving Institution. As of fall 2025, it had 797 undergraduate and graduate students. Whittier athletic teams compete in NCAA Division III.
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 2.0-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 40 Title IV programs, 8 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 32 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing8 · 20.0%
- No Data32 · 80.0%
- 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.
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
Action history · 1
- Jun 2022Renewal of AccreditationWASC 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, 308 students received $1.8M in Pell grants, alongside $4.5M 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 561 borrowers who entered repayment, 10 (1.7%) 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 Whittier 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 · 10
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 campus15
- Public property3
Includes 8 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
- Stauffer Hall2 firesDamage $100-$999
- Stauffer Hall2 firesDamage $100-$999
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Whittier College vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Whittier 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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectWhittier College | 60% | — | 795 | $29,871 | Baccalaureate |
Austin College | 67% | 47.7% | 1,217 | $23,451 | Baccalaureate |
Bard College | 68% | 52.1% | 2,911 | $31,771 | Baccalaureate |
Earlham College | 69% | 73.1% | 753 | $24,516 | Baccalaureate |
Goucher College | 57% | 77.7% | 1,459 | $23,774 | Baccalaureate |
Guilford College | 46% | 80.0% | 1,180 | $21,200 | Baccalaureate |
Hollins University | 65% | 68.0% | 761 | $22,263 | Baccalaureate |
Knox College | 68% | 70.8% | 1,136 | $24,875 | Baccalaureate |
Lake Forest College | 78% | 56.8% | 1,837 | $27,499 | Baccalaureate |
Millsaps College | 57% | 43.1% | 593 | $25,291 | Baccalaureate |
Occidental College | 81% | 44.2% | 1,881 | $39,329 | Baccalaureate |
Pitzer College | 83% | 25.2% | 1,242 | $31,663 | Baccalaureate |
Randolph College | 46% | 93.7% | 816 | $18,436 | Baccalaureate |
Southwestern University | 73% | 43.1% | 1,440 | $27,468 | Baccalaureate |
Ursinus College | 73% | 91.8% | 1,502 | $30,485 | Baccalaureate |
Wofford College | 84% | 51.9% | 1,817 | $28,984 | Baccalaureate |
| Peer group median | 68% | 56.8% | 1,230 | $26,380 |
Whittier College Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness supports the mission and strategic values of the college through a culture of evidence-based planning. The mission is to provide timely, accurate, and unbiased data to support strategic planning and to facilitate the assessment work of faculty and administrators.
Visit IR office page- Don Everhart, Ph.D.Director of Institutional Research and Effectiveness
Common Data Set (11)
The institution's official annual Common Data Set publications — the most detailed reference for enrollment, admissions, and outcomes.
Reports & documents (2)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- FactbookFact Book 2024-20252024The Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness at Whittier College maintains the Fact Book and other resources containing institutional data on students, faculty, and staff. These resources are designed to assist with planning, assessment, and continuous improvement efforts for the college.whittier.edu
Notable alumni of Whittier College (10)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- Richard NixonPolitics
- Fred D. AndersonBusiness
- Andrea BarberEntertainment
- Cassey HoEntertainment
- Cheryl Boone IsaacsEntertainment
- Zilpha Keatley SnyderLiterature and journalism
- William F. HouseMedicine
- Wayne R. GrishamPolitics
- Tony StricklandPolitics
- Don SuttonSports
Frequently asked questions about Whittier College
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Whittier College.
What is the graduation rate at Whittier College?
How many students attend Whittier College?
What is the average net price at Whittier College?
What is the yield rate at Whittier College?
Where is Whittier College located?
Who runs Institutional Research at Whittier College?
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