College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

Golden West College: Rankings, Admissions, Cost & Majors

286 awards Ranking Badges
Fair Price Value for Your Money
10% Student Loan Default Rate

Golden West College is a public institution in Huntington Beach, California enrolling 9,034 undergraduates. It has an on-time graduation rate of 49%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,455 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 28%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.

Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.

How Is Golden West College Ranked?

Golden West College ranks #1,455 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 28%.

#1,455 Best Colleges in Nation
#164 Best Colleges in CA
Golden West College ranking badge

2027 Rankings

College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.

Golden West College was awarded 286 badges in the 2027 rankings.

Overall Quality

College Factual ranked Golden West College as #1,455 out of 5,159 colleges and universities in the country on its 2027 Best Colleges list.

Golden West College also holds the #164 spot on the Best Colleges in California ranking.

See all of the rankings for Golden West College.

Is It Hard to Get Into Golden West College?

Acceptance Rate

Learn more about Golden West College admissions.

What Is the Student-to-Faculty Ratio at Golden West College?

29 to 1 Student to Faculty
31% Full Time Teachers

Student to Faculty Ratio

The student to faculty ratio at Golden West College is 29 to 1, which is high when compared to the national average of 15 to 1. This may indicate that some of your classes will be larger in size than they would be at other schools. However, upper level classes will probably be smaller.

Percent of Full-Time Faculty

In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.

The full-time faculty percentage at Golden West College is 31%. This is lower than the national average of 47%.

Full-Time Faculty Percent  31 out of 100
0
100

What Are the Graduation and Retention Rates at Golden West College?

70% Freshmen Retention
49% On-Time Graduation Rate

Freshmen Retention Rate

The freshmen retention rate tells us what percentage of first-year, full-time students choose to continue on to their sophomore year at a particular school. The rate at Golden West College is 70%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 68%.

Freshmen Retention Rate  70 out of 100
0
100

Graduation Rate

The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor’s degree is typically four years. This rate at Golden West College for first-time, full-time students is 49%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.

On-Time Graduation Rate  49 out of 100
0
100

Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Golden West College.

How Diverse Is Golden West College?

9,034 Undergraduate Students
71.1% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
54.1% Percent Women

In the current academic year, there are 9,034 undergraduates at Golden West College.

Get more detailed information on the diversity at Golden West College.

How Much Does Golden West College Cost?

$17,140 Net Price
2% Take Out Loans
$22,708 Total Student Loans

The overall average net price of Golden West College is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of Golden West College, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.

Student Loan Debt

Almost 66% of college students who graduated with the class of 2018 took out student loans, but that percentage varies from school to school. At Golden West College, approximately 2% of students took out student loans averaging $5,677 a year. That adds up to $22,708 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 9.9%. This is about the same as the national default rate of 10.1%. Get more details about paying for Golden West College.

How Much Do Golden West College Graduates Earn?

$43,145 Avg Salary of Grads
Low Earnings Boost

Yearly salaries vary depending on what you major in, but on average, bachelor’s degree recipients from Golden West College make around $43,145 per year during the early years of their employment. Unfortunately, this is 12% less than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. However, graduates in your major field may make more. Average Salary for Golden West College Graduates

See which majors at Golden West College make the most money.

Where Is Golden West College Located?

California State
9,034 Undergraduate Students
Suburb Campus Setting

Golden West College is a public institution found in Huntington Beach, California. Huntington Beach is a good match for students who enjoy the safety and convenience of the suburbs. Get more details about the location of Golden West College.

Location of Golden West College

Contact details for Golden West College can be found below.

Contact Details
Address: 15744 Goldenwest St., Huntington Beach, CA 92647-2710
Phone: 7148927711
Website: www.goldenwestcollege.edu

What Majors Does Golden West College Offer?

27 Majors With Completions
10,470 Undergraduate Degrees

In the latest year of available data, students from 27 majors graduated from Golden West College. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.

Most Popular Majors Completions Average Salary of Graduates
Multi-Disciplinary Studies 5,235 NA
Liberal Arts General Studies 3,183 $22,411
Biological & Physical Science 342 NA
Business Administration & Management 230 NA
Economics 175 NA
Criminal Justice & Corrections 163 $67,154
Cosmetology 152 $17,577
Nursing 124 $67,253
General Psychology 117 NA
Physiology & Pathology Sciences 102 NA

Learn more about the majors offered at Golden West College along with which ones have the highest average starting salaries.

Does Golden West College Offer Online Classes?

82% Take At Least One Class Online
47% Take All Classes Online

7,373 students took at least one online class at Golden West College.

Online courses are a great option for busy, working students as well as for those who have scheduling conflicts and want to study on their own time. As time goes by, expect to see more and more online learning options become available.

Learn more about online learning at Golden West College.

Curious how schools stack up against Golden West College? Pit them head to head with College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.

Notes and References

Footnotes

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options