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Public Community College

Coastline Community College

Public Community College in Fountain Valley, CA. Six-year graduation rate 34%. Median 10-year earnings $44,483.

Verdict Mixed outcomes
Coastline Community College · Campus
Median earnings · 10 yr
$44,483
Median debt at grad
$8,250
Graduation rate
33.8%
Federal loan default
0%

Ten years after entry, the median Coastline Community College student earns $44,483 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. Only 34% finish within six years, so roughly two in three students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Graduates leave owing a median of $8,250 — modest by four-year standards.

Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.

Green Flags
  • Debt-to-income ratio 0.19 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
  • 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Red Flags
  • ! Graduation rate 34% — below national average

Academics

Full-time retention
43%
Transfer-out rate
14%
Student:faculty
39:1

A six-year graduation rate of 34% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. 43% first-year retention is low enough to be the defining risk of enrolling here. A 14% transfer-out rate accounts for part of that gap: those students left for another institution rather than dropping out, and the graduation rate above counts them as non-completers here. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 30% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled. A 39:1 ratio means students need to be deliberate about getting faculty time.

Financial Aid

Average net price
$16,972
Full-time, first-time undergraduates paying the in-state rate who were awarded grant or scholarship aid
% receiving grants
63%
degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
% receiving federal loans
1%
degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 7,007 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates

Average net price after grant aid is $16,972 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. Net price varies modestly by income — $16,454 at $0–30k against $21,617 at $75–110k — so the average is a fair guide for most families. Grant aid reaches 63% of students at an average of $1,559. Only 1% take federal loans. Private borrowing is not captured in this figure.

Entering first-year students

A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.

% receiving grants
70%
Average grant
$5,455

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 87 students

Net price by family income

The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.

Family income band Average net price
$0–30k $16,454
$30–48k $19,464
$48–75k $15,207
$75–110k $21,617
$110k+

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24

Federal student loans went to 104 of these 7,007 students, totalling $738,346 — an average of $7,099 each.

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24

Local housing costs

Typical rents near campus (Orange County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.

Studio
$2,682/mo
1 bedroom
$2,746/mo
2 bedroom (whole unit)
$3,236/mo

HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026

Veterans & GI Bill

GI Bill students
186
Yellow Ribbon
No
Principles of Excellence
Yes

VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)

Compare Coastline Community College with peer institutions

How we evaluate Coastline Community College

IPEDS
US Department of Education
College Scorecard
Post-grad earnings
Census PSEO
Earnings by major
Opportunity Insights
Mobility by institution
Read our full methodology →