Community colleges have grown increasingly important in higher education. With traditional four-year degrees becoming more and more expensive, community colleges are one of the few avenues available for providing middle- and low-income earners a path to higher education and a brighter future. Local community colleges do this primarily by preparing students to transfer — at lower cost — to a traditional university, and ultimately a four-year degree, by not only providing effective and affordable courses, but by providing the resources, counseling, and academic environment needed to help make those transfers happen.
California’s community college system is the largest in the nation. To find out who was the best in the state of California, I examined the transfer rates of all of California’s 112 community colleges covering the periods between 2003 and 2010. The transfer rate — the most recent of which looks at how many freshman students in 2003-2004 transfered within the next 7 years — was 44% state-wide. The lowest rate was Copper Mountain College, whose transfer rate was just 15%.
The top five community colleges in California:
5. Ohlone College
Ohlone College’s most recent transfer rate was 58%, good for fifth-best in the state of California. Located in the Bay Area’s Fremont and Newark cities, Ohlone enrolls almost 20,000 students a year in 190 degrees and academic programs and transfers about 600 students a year to four-year colleges and universities, according to its website.
4. Irvine Valley College
Edging out Ohlone was Orange County’s Irvine Valley College, whose 59% percent transfer rate should make even Irvine native Will Ferrel proud. IVC’s President, Glenn Roquemore, underlines IVC’s “beautiful campus,” which “offers a friendly, relaxed atmosphere and the most current technology.”
3. Santa Monica College
Situated in one of the country’s most beautiful locales, Santa Monica College manages to send 60% of its students to a four-year college or university. Open since 1929, Santa Monica College now serves approximately 30,000 students in more than 80 fields of study, according to its website.
2. De Anza College
Named after a Spanish explorer, De Anza College is nestled in the heart of Silicon Valley and just 45 miles south of San Francisco, posting a sparkling 61% transfer rate. Prospective students can take a virtual tour of the campus through the college’s colorful website.
1. Foothill College
Foothill College’s 62% transfer rate, good for best in the state of California, speaks for itself. Such a stellar number leaves little need for flashy marketing, as evidenced by Foothill’s simple, yet effective slogan: “Upgrade. Advance.”
Located in the Bay Area’s Los Altos Hills in a charming campus, Foothill College views itself as a leader in the community college system, and for good reason — it was the first California community college to offer online courses. Today, Foothill offers more than 500 such courses.
