by our College Data Analytics TeamCalifornia State Polytechnic University-Humboldt is a public institution in Arcata, California enrolling 5,612 undergraduates. It accepts 98% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 49%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #905 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 18%), 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.
California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt ranks #905 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 18%.
In its yearly rankings, College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities to determine which ones are the best in a variety of categories, such as overall value, quality, diversity, which schools are the best for each major, and much more.
California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt was awarded 36 badges in the 2027 rankings.
According to College Factual’s 2027 analysis, Cal Poly Humboldt is ranked #905 out of 5,159 schools in the nation that were analyzed for overall quality. This puts it in the top 20% of all schools in the nation.
Cal Poly Humboldt is also ranked #104 on the Best Colleges in California list.
See all of the rankings for California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt.
With an acceptance rate of 98%, California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt is easier to get into than many other schools. But that doesn’t mean you can slack off on your application. Make sure to treat this school like any other when submitting requested materials and documents.
Learn more about California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt admissions.
With a student to faculty ratio of 16 to 1, California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt is about average in this regard as the nationwide rate is 15 to 1. While this does not translate directly to class size, it’s a good indicator of how much time professors will have to spend with their students on a one-on-one basis.
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 California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt is 52%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate of 76% tells us that most first-year, full-time students like California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt enough to come back for another year. This is a fair bit higher than the national average of 68%. That’s certainly something to check off in the good column about the school.
The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor’s degree is typically four years. This rate at Cal Poly Humboldt for first-time, full-time students is 49%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.
In the current academic year, there are 5,612 undergraduates at Cal Poly Humboldt.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt.
The typical net cost at Cal Poly Humboldt is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $8,483 | $8,812 | $11,088 | $15,593 | $22,228 |
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 Cal Poly Humboldt, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
It’s not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At Cal Poly Humboldt, approximately 34% of students took out student loans averaging $6,491 a year. That adds up to $25,964 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 9.8%. This is about the same as the national default rate of 10.1%. Get more details about paying for California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt.
Yearly salaries vary depending on what you major in, but on average, bachelor’s degree recipients from California State Polytechnic U-Humboldt make around $47,626 per year during the early years of their employment. This is right on par with the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. Also, graduates in your major field may make more.
See which majors at California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt make the most money.
California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt is an public institution located in Arcata, California. The surrounding location of Arcata is ideal for students who enjoy the charms of a college town. Get more details about the location of California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt.
Contact information for California State Polytechnic U-Humboldt can be found below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 1 Harpst Street, Arcata, CA 95521-8299 |
| Phone: | 7078263011 |
| Website: | www.humboldt.edu |
| Wikipedia: | en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humboldt_State_University |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/humboldtstate |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/humboldtstate |
In the latest year of available data, students from 26 majors graduated from California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt. 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 | 1,460 | NA |
| Natural Resources Conservation | 150 | $32,367 |
| General Psychology | 123 | $24,108 |
| Social Work | 107 | $39,529 |
| Business Administration & Management | 106 | $32,215 |
| Wildlife Management | 77 | $23,995 |
| General Biology | 74 | $25,491 |
| Forestry | 69 | $40,805 |
| Fine & Studio Arts | 58 | $20,861 |
| Health & Physical Education | 51 | $24,253 |
3,169 students took at least one online class at California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt.
Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.
Learn more about online learning at California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt.
Interested in comparing Cal Poly Humboldt? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free tool for head-to-head college comparisons.
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.
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