by our College Data Analytics TeamPalomar College is a public institution in San Marcos, California enrolling 17,712 undergraduates. It has an on-time graduation rate of 38%, near the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,295 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 25%), 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.
Palomar College ranks #1,295 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 25%.
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.
Palomar College was awarded 300 badges in the 2027 rankings.
College Factual ranked Palomar College as #1,295 out of 5,159 colleges and universities in the country on its 2027 Best Colleges list.
Palomar College is also ranked #148 on the Best Colleges in California list.
See all of the rankings for Palomar College.
Learn more about Palomar College admissions.
At Palomar College, the student to faculty ratio is 25 to 1. Compared to the national average of 15 to 1, this is somewhat high. This could mean that class sizes may be larger than they are at other colleges or universities or that professors may be required to teach more classes.
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 Palomar College is 32%. This is lower than the national average of 47%.
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 Palomar College is 70%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 68%.
The on-time graduation rate is the percent of first-time, full-time students who get their bachelor’s degree within four years. At Palomar College this rate is 38%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Palomar College.
The current enrollment includes 17,712 undergraduates at Palomar College.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at Palomar College.
The typical net cost at Palomar College 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 + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $4,268 | $4,786 | $7,710 | $9,766 | $12,642 |
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 Palomar College, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
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 Palomar College, approximately 1% of students took out student loans averaging $6,686 a year. That adds up to $26,744 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 27.6%. This is significantly higher than the national default rate of 10.1%, which means you could have trouble paying back your student loans if you take any out. Get more details about paying for Palomar College.
Although some majors pay more than others, students who graduate from Palomar College with a bachelor’s degree go on to jobs where they make an average salary of $42,300 in their early years. Unfortunately, this is 14% less than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. However, graduates in your major field may make more.
See which majors at Palomar College make the most money.
Palomar College is a public institution situated in San Marcos, California. Palomar College is located in a safe and convenient suburb. Get more details about the location of Palomar College.
Get in touch with Palomar College are listed below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 1140 W. Mission Road, San Marcos, CA 92069-1487 |
| Phone: | 7607441150 |
| Website: | www2.palomar.edu/ |
In the most recent reporting year, students from 33 majors graduated from Palomar 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 | 4,791 | NA |
| Liberal Arts General Studies | 1,433 | NA |
| Business Administration & Management | 683 | NA |
| Biological & Physical Science | 321 | NA |
| General Social Sciences | 257 | NA |
| Allied Health Professions | 211 | NA |
| Fire Protection | 171 | NA |
| Child Development & Family Studies | 132 | NA |
| General Psychology | 122 | NA |
| General Biology | 83 | NA |
11,913 students took at least one online class at Palomar College.
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 Palomar College.
Interested in comparing Palomar College? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.
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.