Public · Fullerton, California

Fullerton College

Fullerton College is a public institution in Fullerton, 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.

$6,134
Avg net price / yr
$43,366
10-yr median earnings
33.9%
150%-time completion

The verdict

Fullerton College posts above-median former-student earnings.

According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.

Top 43%
former-student earnings, US
33.9%
150%-time completion
+26%
earnings, 6→10 yrs
Suburb: Large Carnegie: Associate's
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Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.

How to read this Fullerton College 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-High Traditional"), 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

C+
College Value Score
61/100
Fullerton College

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 C
$43,366
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price A+
$6,134
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate F
33.9%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt A+
$4,500
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment C-
60.7%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention N/A
N/A
First-year students returning for year two
Fullerton College vs. the national benchmark
EarningsNet PriceCompletionDebtRepaymentRetention

Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.

10-yr median earnings

$43,366

Federal aid recipients only

Avg net price

$6,134

After grants and scholarships

150%-time completion

33.9%

Full-time, first-time cohort

150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 33.9%

Less-than-four-year-institution cohort

College ROI Quadrant - Fullerton College vs peers

Fullerton College positioned by earnings vs cost Two-by-two quadrant chart: x-axis median earnings 10 years after enrollment, y-axis average net price after financial aid. Each dot is a college, colored by completion within 150% of normal time (garnet ≥65%, amber 45-64%, red <45%). Net price increases upward, earnings increase rightward, so: bottom-right = best value (low cost, high earnings); top-right = premium (high cost, high earnings); bottom-left = community college tier (low cost, modest earnings); top-left = cost challenge (high cost, low earnings). Currently plotting 8 colleges. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard joined to Carnegie Classification. Fullerton College positioned by earnings vs … Carnegie Classification: Associate's Associate's COST CHALLENGE PREMIUM COMMUNITY BEST VALUE $32K $72K Median Earnings 10 Years After Enrollment ($) $4K $31K Avg Net Price ($) Fullerton College (you are here): $43K earn · $6K net · 34% grad You are here - Fullerton College Bakersfield College: $37K earn · $15K net · 22% grad Bakersfield College City College of San Francisco: $46K earn · $7K net · 40% grad City College of San Sacramento City College: $42K earn · $7K net · 32% grad Sacramento City Co… Saddleback College: $51K earn · $4K net · 46% grad Saddleback College Palomar College: $42K earn · $6K net · 36% grad Palomar College University of California-Santa Cruz: $68K earn · $18K net · 75% grad Hope International University: $50K earn · $29K net · 48% grad Grad rate (4yr) ≥65% 45-64% <45%
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education

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 Fullerton College 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.

Fullerton College: former-student earnings vs. every US college

10-year median earnings, College Scorecard

$43,366 Top 43% higher than 57% of 5,103 US colleges

$0–$20,000: 169 US colleges (3%). Below this entry. $20,000–$40,000: 2,245 US colleges (44%). Below this entry. $40,000–$60,000: 1,897 US colleges (37%). This entry sits in this band. $60,000–$80,000: 606 US colleges (12%). Above this entry. $80,000–$100,000: 134 US colleges (3%). Above this entry. $100,000–$120,000: 39 US colleges (1%). Above this entry. $120,000–$140,000: 11 US colleges (0%). Above this entry. $140,000–$160,000: 2 US colleges (0%). Above this entry. This college $0 $160,000 every US college, bucketed by value

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 Fullerton College National rank Percentile
10-yr median earnings $43,366 #2186 of 5103 57th
Average net price $6,134 #507 of 5020 90th (lower is better)
150%-time completion 33.9% #4041 of 4858 17th
Undergraduate enrollment 17,121 #177 of 5462 97th

National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.

Quick Facts

17,121
Undergraduate enrollment
-
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
33.9%
150%-time completion
$43,366
10-yr median earnings
-
First-year retention

How Fullerton College ranks in California

State rank among 493 reporting California colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.

Metric Fullerton College State rank Percentile
10-yr median earnings $43,366 #219 of 493 56th
Average net price $6,134 #56 of 495 89th (lower is better)
150%-time completion 33.9% #428 of 483 11th
Undergraduate enrollment 17,121 #40 of 553 93rd

Highest former-student earnings in California

#School10-yr earningsNet price
1Samuel Merritt University$143,238-
2Harvey Mudd College$138,687$35,924
3California Institute of Technology$128,566$16,075
4Stanford University$124,080$13,807
5Los Angeles County College of Nursing and Allied Health$115,318-
6Gnomon$114,785$51,949
7Santa Clara University$109,183$50,062
8Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University$109,183-
9Touro University California$104,805-
10Claremont McKenna College$104,736$28,849
11West Coast University-Anaheim-Orange County$102,672$32,879
12West Coast University-Ontario$102,672$49,590
219Fullerton CollegeThis school$43,366$6,134

Costs & Financial Aid

Net price by family income at Fullerton College

Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket

net price / yr

What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Fullerton College - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.

Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard As of Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals

Tuition & Net Price

In-State Tuition $1,150
Out-of-State Tuition $12,379
Average Net Price $6,134
26.6%
Pell Grant Rate
2.0%
Federal Loan Rate
$4,500
Median Debt
$48/mo
Monthly Payment

Published tuition barely moved. What students actually pay rose +86.8%.

Between 2013 and 2023, Fullerton College's published in-state tuition went from $1,138 to $1,150 (+1.1%), but average net price for the reported Title IV-recipient cohort after grant aid, went from $4,330 to $8,090. The sticker price and the real price moved apart.

Published tuition
+1.1%
$1,138 → $1,150
Average net price
+86.8%
$4,330 → $8,090
Average net price, 2013–2023

11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.

2013: $4,3302014: $6,4562015: $5,7222016: $5,3062017: $4,2852018: $5,2892019: $5,7942020: $7,7212021: $9,7652022: $8,4182023: $8,090
2013 · $4,3302023 · $8,090

Over the same years, enrollment went -25.4% (22,295 → 16,637 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

54.3%
Female
53.3%
First Generation

Outcomes

$34,531
Median Earnings (6yr)
49.1%
Earning Over $25K
60.7%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)

Outcomes & debt snapshot

Measure Cohort / horizon Value
Completion within 150% of normal time First-time, full-time 33.9%
Median earnings 6 years after entry $34,531
Median earnings 10 years after entry $43,366
Share earning over $25,000 Working, not enrolled 49.1%
Loan repayment rate Completers, 3 years after leaving 60.7%
Median federal student debt At completion $4,500
Estimated monthly payment Standard 10-year plan $48/mo

Programs & Earnings

No program-level earnings data available for this school.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the admissions statistics for Fullerton College?
Fullerton College is a public institution in Fullerton, California. Undergraduate enrollment is 17,121 students.
How much do Fullerton College former students earn?
Federally aided former students at Fullerton College who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $43,366 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $34,531.
How much does Fullerton College cost?
The average net price at Fullerton College is $6,134. In-state tuition is $1,150 and out-of-state tuition is $12,379. Median student debt at graduation is $4,500.
What is the graduation rate at Fullerton College?
Fullerton College has a 33.9% completion rate within 150% of normal program time at a less-than-four-year institution.
Is Fullerton College worth the student debt?
The median student debt at Fullerton College is $4,500, while former students earn a median of $43,366 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 10% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 60.7% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $48.

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.

Where to go next from Fullerton College

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.