10-yr median earnings
$54,172
Federal aid recipients only
Public · San Mateo, California
College of San Mateo
College of San Mateo is a public institution in San Mateo, California. as a public institution, published Scorecard outcomes are the federal Title-IV cohort view of former students — not every graduate and not a guarantee for any one enrollee.
- $536
- Avg net price / yr
- $54,172
- 10-yr median earnings
- 58.7%
- 150%-time completion
The verdict
College of San Mateo posts top-quartile former-student earnings.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- Top 23%
- former-student earnings, US
- 58.7%
- 150%-time completion
- +24%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
City: Midsize
Carnegie: Associate's
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this College of San Mateo profile
Figures above come from IPEDS institution records published through the College Scorecard (retrieved July 2026 for institution fields; March 2026 for field-of-study). Peer groups and cost cohorts follow IPEDS ownership sector, Carnegie class ("Associate's Colleges: High Transfer-Mixed Traditional/Nontraditional"), and locale, not an editorial shortlist.
Average net price subtracts grant and scholarship aid from cost of attendance for full-time, first-time undergraduate Title IV recipients. It is a defined cohort average, not a personalized price; income-band fields add context but do not replace the school's current net-price calculator.
Earnings use Treasury-linked records for federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled in the measurement year (completers and noncompleters). IPEDS completion and retention use separate first-time, full-time cohorts, so those denominators are not the earnings cohort. Read cost, completion, and earnings as distinct historical measures, not a causal verdict or individual forecast.
College Value Score
B
College Value Score
71/100
College of San Mateo
A 6-metric composite of earnings, cost, and completion outcomes benchmarked against every reporting US college, not a ranking of teaching quality, campus life, or fit for any individual student. See the full methodology.
Earnings B+
$54,172
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price A+
$536
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate C-
58.7%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt D
$14,695
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment N/A
N/A
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention N/A
N/A
First-year students returning for year two
Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.
Avg net price
$536
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
58.7%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 58.7%
Less-than-four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - College of San Mateo vs peers
Each dot is a college plotted by 10-year median earnings (x-axis) vs average net price (y-axis), colored by completion within 150% of normal time. Bottom-right = high earnings/lower price; top-left = lower earnings/higher price.
How College of San Mateo ranks nationally
Where this school's former-student earnings fall within the full national distribution of every US college that reports to the College Scorecard, not just its peer set.
College of San Mateo: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$54,172 Top 23% higher than 77% of 5,103 US colleges
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more US colleges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals
| Metric | College of San Mateo | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $54,172 | #1164 of 5103 | 77th |
| Average net price | $536 | #18 of 5020 | 100th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 58.7% | #2320 of 4858 | 52nd |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 7,977 | #450 of 5462 | 92nd |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
7,977
Undergraduate enrollment
-
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
58.7%
150%-time completion
$54,172
10-yr median earnings
-
First-year retention
How College of San Mateo ranks in California
State rank among 493 reporting California colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | College of San Mateo | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $54,172 | #139 of 493 | 72nd |
| Average net price | $536 | #6 of 495 | 99th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 58.7% | #275 of 483 | 43rd |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 7,977 | #96 of 553 | 83rd |
Highest former-student earnings in California
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samuel Merritt University | $143,238 | - |
| 2 | Harvey Mudd College | $138,687 | $35,924 |
| 3 | California Institute of Technology | $128,566 | $16,075 |
| 4 | Stanford University | $124,080 | $13,807 |
| 5 | Los Angeles County College of Nursing and Allied Health | $115,318 | - |
| 6 | Gnomon | $114,785 | $51,949 |
| 7 | Santa Clara University | $109,183 | $50,062 |
| 8 | Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University | $109,183 | - |
| 9 | Touro University California | $104,805 | - |
| 10 | Claremont McKenna College | $104,736 | $28,849 |
| 11 | West Coast University-Anaheim-Orange County | $102,672 | $32,879 |
| 12 | West Coast University-Ontario | $102,672 | $49,590 |
| 139 | College of San MateoThis school | $54,172 | $536 |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at College of San Mateo
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k $-1,310
$0 – $30k
$-1,310 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k $-902
$30k – $48k
$-902 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k
$48k – $75k
$3,342 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at College of San Mateo - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $1,332 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $11,384 |
| Average Net Price | $536 |
10.9%
Pell Grant Rate
0.6%
Federal Loan Rate
$14,695
Median Debt
$156/mo
Monthly Payment
Net price at College of San Mateo swings rather than trends
Across 11 reported years between 2013 and 2023, the average net price here has ranged from $984 to $5,774 without settling into a rise or a fall. Comparing only the first and last years would read as -74.0%, but the years in between do not follow that line, so the honest summary is the range rather than a trend. Budget against the upper end, not the average.
Lowest year
$984
Highest year
$5,774
Most recent (2023)
$1,504
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $5,7742023 · $1,504
Over the same years, enrollment went -12.2% (8,378 → 7,359 students).
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, per-year fields (2013–2023). Net price is the average cost after grant and scholarship aid for federally-aided undergraduates.
Student Demographics
Race & ethnicity
Student body at a glance
51.5%
Female
51.0%
First Generation
Outcomes
$43,803
Median Earnings (6yr)
54.9%
Earning Over $25K
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 58.7% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $43,803 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $54,172 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 54.9% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $14,695 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $156/mo |
Programs & Earnings
Top programs at College of San Mateo by completer earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Registered Nursing, Nursin…
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
$144,794 median earnings
- Business Administration, M…
Business Administration, Management and Operations
$72,390 median earnings
- Communication and Media St…
Communication and Media Studies
$65,120 median earnings
- Criminal Justice and Corre… $55,857
Criminal Justice and Corrections
$55,857 median earnings
- Social Sciences, General $52,619
Social Sciences, General
$52,619 median earnings
- Psychology, General $49,708
Psychology, General
$49,708 median earnings
What this shows The highest-earning programs at a school are not necessarily its most popular ones - a small specialized program can post strong median earnings without reflecting the outcome most students here actually see.
| Program | Credential | Completers | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Associate's | 45 | $144,794 | $14,715 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Associate's | 125 | $72,390 | - |
| Communication and Media Studies | Associate's | 52 | $65,120 | - |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | Associate's | 45 | $55,857 | - |
| Social Sciences, General | Associate's | 133 | $52,619 | - |
| Psychology, General | Associate's | 63 | $49,708 | - |
| Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services | Associate's | 2 | - | - |
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Matches use Scorecard measures among reporting colleges — not state-system recommendations or geographic proximity.
Similar Enrollment and Sector
Other Public institutions closest in reported enrollment, preferring the same Carnegie classification.
Similar Reported Net Price
Other Public institutions with the nearest reported average net price.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the admissions statistics for College of San Mateo? ▼
College of San Mateo is a public institution in San Mateo, California. Undergraduate enrollment is 7,977 students.
How much do College of San Mateo former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at College of San Mateo who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $54,172 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $43,803.
How much does College of San Mateo cost? ▼
The average net price at College of San Mateo is $536. In-state tuition is $1,332 and out-of-state tuition is $11,384. Median student debt at graduation is $14,695.
What is the graduation rate at College of San Mateo? ▼
College of San Mateo has a 58.7% completion rate within 150% of normal program time at a less-than-four-year institution.
Is College of San Mateo worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at College of San Mateo is $14,695, while former students earn a median of $54,172 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 27% of those annual earnings. Estimated monthly loan payment is $156.
Sources & methodology
Public-college profiles lean on IPEDS enrollment and Scorecard Title-IV outcomes. State appropriations are outside this page; the figures below are the federal cohort measures only.
Every number is read live from the Mar–Jul 2026 Scorecard/IPEDS retrievals. Public institutions often enroll large Title-IV cohorts, so medians can be stable — still cohort averages, never a personal forecast. Read the full methodology for how the data is sourced, computed, and verified.
- College Scorecard, U.S. Department of Education - former-student earnings, cost & completion (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- IPEDS, National Center for Education Statistics - enrollment, admissions, Carnegie class & demographics (nces.ed.gov/ipeds).
- U.S. Treasury / IRS earnings linkage - median earnings 6 & 10 years after enrollment for federal-aid recipients (irs.gov).
- College Scorecard, Field of Study - program-level (credential) earnings & debt (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- Federal Student Aid (Title IV / NSLDS) - U.S. Department of Education - net price, student debt & aid-recipient repayment outcomes (studentaid.gov).
Where to go next from College of San Mateo
- Compare College of San Mateo against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in California side by side.Browse California
- See how fields of study differ on former-student earnings and debt.Explore programs
Public-college Scorecard figures are historical Title-IV cohort averages — confirm current tuition, aid, and admissions rules with the institution before deciding.
Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Public-institution profiles compile Scorecard Title-IV earnings, IPEDS enrollment/admissions, and Treasury linkage fields — no editor-typed figures. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals.