California State University - Los Angeles Overview
Located in Los Angeles, California, California State University - Los Angeles is a public institution. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life.
What Is California State University - Los Angeles Known For?
- The student loan default rate at Cal State LA is 4%, which is significantly lower than the national rate of 10.1%. That's great news for students who are worrying about paying off their student loans.
- The highest award offered at Cal State LA is the doctor's degree.
- For the 2017-2018 academic year, 41% of the faculty were full-time.
- Students who graduate from Cal State LA with a bachelor's degree make about $46,100 a year. That's 13% more than those who graduate from other schools.
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California State University - Los Angeles Rankings
Our rankings are based on an outcomes-based approach rather than subjective ones used by other media outlets. As such, we utilize data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and the College Scorecard, among other sources. Visit our rankings and methodology section to learn more.
Cal State LA has been awarded the following overall awards by our latest rankings.
Rank | Ranking Name | Share |
---|---|---|
#72 | Most Popular Bachelor’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#134 | Most Popular Graduate Certificate Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#182 | Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
Program Level Awards
These are highlights of some of the most noteworthy awards granted to specific programs at Cal State LA.
Awards From Around the Web
The following table lists some notable awards Cal State LA has earned from around the web.
Rank | Ranking Name | Source |
---|---|---|
#29 | Best Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting Colleges for Non-Traditional Students | College Factual |
#35 | Best Social Work Colleges for Veterans | College Factual |
#41 | Best Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting Colleges for Veterans | College Factual |
#58 | Highest Paid Nursing Graduates | College Factual |
#59 | Best Teaching Master’s Degree Schools | Teaching Degree Search |
#104 | Best Nursing Colleges for Veterans | College Factual |
Where Is California State University - Los Angeles?

Contact details for Cal State LA are given below.
Contact Details | |
---|---|
Address: | 5151 State University Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90032-8506 |
Phone: | 323-343-3000 |
Website: | www.calstatela.edu |
Facebook: | https://www.facebook.com/CalStateLA |
Twitter: | https://twitter.com/calstatela |
How Do I Get Into Cal State LA?
You can apply to Cal State LA online at: https://www2.calstate.edu/apply
Admission Requirements for Cal State LA
Submission | Required? |
---|---|
High School GPA | required |
High School Rank | neither required nor recommended |
High School Transcript | required |
College Prep Program | required |
Recommendations | neither required nor recommended |
SAT or ACT Scores | required |
TOEFL | neither required nor recommended |
How Hard Is It To Get Into Cal State LA?
Approximately 39% of accepted students are men and 61% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 44%, and the acceptance rate for women is 48%.
Average Test Scores
About 95% of students accepted to Cal State LA submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 450 and 540. Math scores were between 440 and 540.
Can I Afford California State University - Los Angeles?
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.
Student Loan Debt
While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At Cal State LA, approximately 20% of students took out student loans averaging $4,282 a year. That adds up to $17,128 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at Cal State LA is 4.3%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you'll be able to pay back your student loans.
California State University - Los Angeles Undergraduate Student Diversity

There are also 3,874 graduate students at the school.
Gender Diversity
Of the 19,729 full-time undergraduates at Cal State LA, 42% are male and 58% are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity
The racial-ethnic breakdown of California State University - Los Angeles students is as follows.

Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 2,450 |
Black or African American | 593 |
Hispanic or Latino | 13,869 |
White | 821 |
International Students | 1,335 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 661 |
Geographic Diversity
California students aren't the only ones who study at California State University - Los Angeles. At this time, 12 states are represented by the student population at the school.
Over 71 countries are represented at Cal State LA. The most popular countries sending students to the school are India, China, and Saudi Arabia.
Online Learning at California State University - Los Angeles
The following chart shows how the online learning population at Cal State LA has changed over the last few years.

Online Growth Rankings of Cal State LA
The average growth rate over the last four years of online students at California State University - Los Angeles was 7.9%. This is the #1,460 largest growth rate of all schools that are only partially online. This refers to all students at Cal State LA regardless of major.
When we speak of partially online, we are referring to schools whose online population is less than 50% of its total student body. Mostly online refers to those with online populations greater than or equal to 50%.
California State University - Los Angeles Undergraduate Concentrations
The table below shows the number of awards for each concentration.
References
*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.
- College Factual
- National Center for Education Statistics
- Image Credit: By Justefrain under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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