Desert College vs Golden West College

College of the Desert and Golden West College, both esteemed community colleges in California, offer diverse educational opportunities to students seeking higher education. While they share similarities, each institution possesses unique characteristics that cater to different academic aspirations and preferences. College of the Desert boasts a higher acceptance rate, welcoming a broader range of students, while Golden West College maintains a slightly more selective admissions process. In terms of popular majors, College of the Desert excels in liberal arts and social sciences, whereas Golden West College shines in business, management, and related fields. Furthermore, the student body demographics vary, with College of the Desert having a higher proportion of Hispanic students and Golden West College having a larger Asian population. As for graduation rates, Golden West College holds a slight edge over College of the Desert. To help you make an informed decision about your educational journey, we have compiled a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these aspects and more. Explore the table to discover which college aligns best with your academic goals and personal preferences.

	College of the Desert	Golden West College
Overview
Location	Palm Desert, California	Huntington Beach, California
Campus setting	City: Small	Suburb: Large
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	67.0%	67.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	Open Admission	Open Admission
Application fees
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants
Total number of admissions given out
Admitted students who chose to enroll
Yield rate
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	Not required	Not required
High school GPA	N/A	N/A
Recommendation letters	N/A	N/A
High school transcript	N/A	N/A
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	N/A	N/A

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $24,465 Out of state: $32,109	In state: $23,843 Out of state: $31,211
Average net price	$14,179	$5,433
Tuition	In state: $1,288 Out of state: $8,932	In state: $1,104 Out of state: $8,472
Room & board
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	95.0% Average amount $5,621	75.0% Average amount $5,611
Students receiving federal student loan		1.0% Average amount $7,067
Students taking out private loans		0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	10,229 Men 41.1% Women 58.9%	10,189 Men 43.0% Women 57.0%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	1.5%	2.1%
International students	0.6%	2.4%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	N/A	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Colorado Arizona Florida Indiana	California Hawaii Texas Oregon Washington

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Liberal Arts Psychology Health Professions Family and Consumer Sciences	Liberal Arts Multidisciplinary Studies Health Professions Business Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	24:1	26:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	29.4%	41.8%
Dropout rate	48.9%	37.8%
Transferred out	5.0%	8.8%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $79,088 Year 2: $73,446 Year 3: $79,174 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $20,301 Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: $41,242 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $22,277 Year 2: $21,781 Year 3: $25,003 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $22,771 Year 2: $30,409 Year 3: $23,897 Psychology, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $16,835 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $35,428 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $67,253 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $81,153 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $22,411 Year 2: $15,695 Year 3: $26,025 Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $17,701 Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $17,577 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: N/A Criminal Justice and Corrections (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $67,154 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Business/Commerce, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $12,468 Year 3: N/A

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