State Hub

Colleges in Hawaii

CampusPin tracks 17 colleges in Hawaii, 10 universities and 7 community colleges. Compare tuition, acceptance, size, and setting to build a shortlist that fits.

Colleges tracked

17

Universities

10

Community colleges

7

Avg. in-state tuition

$11k

About college search in Hawaii

How Hawaii's higher-education landscape shapes a search

Hawaii’s public higher-education sector is consolidated into a single statewide system: the University of Hawaiʻi System with 10 institutions including the flagship UH Mānoa (Honolulu), UH Hilo (on the Big Island), UH West Oʻahu (Kapolei), and seven community colleges across the islands. The state’s private sector is small but includes BYU–Hawaiʻi (Lāʻie) and Chaminade University (Honolulu). Hawaii is unique in the U.S. for its isolation and the meaningful share of students who travel between islands or to the mainland for specific programs.

UH Mānoa as flagship

The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (Honolulu) is the state’s primary public research and land-grant university.

Seven UH community colleges

Hawaii operates seven UH community colleges across the islands (Honolulu CC, Kapiʻolani CC, Leeward CC, Windward CC, Maui College, Hawaiʻi CC, Kauaʻi CC).

Native Hawaiian programs

UH Mānoa, UH Hilo, and the community colleges offer specialized programs in Hawaiian language, Hawaiian studies, and Pacific Island studies.

Hawaiʻi Promise Scholarship

The Hawaiʻi Promise program supports tuition costs at UH community colleges for eligible in-state students. Verify current eligibility with UH.

Public university system

University of Hawaiʻi System (10 institutions)

The UH System governs Hawaii’s public four-year universities (UH Mānoa, UH Hilo, UH West Oʻahu) and seven community colleges across the islands.

Community college network

UH Community Colleges (7 colleges)

Seven UH community colleges operate across Oʻahu, Maui, Hawaiʻi Island, and Kauaʻi with transfer paths to UH four-year universities.

In-state vs. out-of-state tuition

Hawaii in-state public tuition is in the mid-range nationally. Out-of-state UH rates are higher. The Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) program may reduce out-of-state rates for students from participating Western states.

Top metros for college search

Where Hawaii's higher-education density concentrates

  • Honolulu / Oʻahu

    Oʻahu is the population center and hosts UH Mānoa, UH West Oʻahu, Chaminade (private), Hawaiʻi Pacific (private), and four UH community colleges.

  • Hilo / Big Island

    Hilo hosts UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College.

  • Kahului / Maui

    Maui hosts UH Maui College, a baccalaureate-granting member of the UH community college network.

What Hawaii actually costs

Median net price after grants
$7,397 for families under $30,000
$16,928 at $110,000 or more
Across 11 Hawaii colleges reporting the full series. All five income bands
Median federal debt at graduation
$13,000 with 16.7% borrowing
Debt without the borrower share is misleading, so CampusPin never shows one alone. Debt by college
Studying entirely online
30% of Hawaii students
Federal enrolment collection, weighted by students rather than campuses. Where they study

Every college we track

Colleges and universities in Hawaii

Filter all Hawaii schools

West region overview

What students weigh when searching colleges in Hawaii

Across Hawaii (HI), CampusPin currently indexes 17 institutions: 10 public and 7 private, split between 10 universities and 7 community colleges. Students often deal with large geographic spread, strong public systems, and meaningful differences between urban, suburban, and remote options.

Compare travel distance and delivery format early so your list reflects how you would actually attend.
Use online and hybrid filters when geography is broad but schedule flexibility matters.
Review campus environment and support detail carefully because Western state searches can mix very different school contexts.

Browse by major

Hawaii colleges by program

Jump straight to Hawaii colleges and universities that offer a specific major. Each page compares tuition, acceptance rate, and enrollment for that program across Hawaii.

Fields with a distinct set of Hawaii colleges

11 fields where the colleges that awarded credentials in Hawaii are a materially different set from those of any closely related field, based on federal completions data. The number is how many colleges awarded credentials.

How to use the Hawaii hub

Start with CampusPin results filtered to Hawaii so your first pass stays geographically focused.
Use school profiles to compare tuition, admissions, program format, and campus fit before building a shortlist.
If you are looking for lower-cost or transfer-first options, compare community colleges and four-year destinations separately.
Use blog guides and help-center content when you need stronger decision frameworks, not just more schools.

Next actions for Hawaii

Explore all colleges in HawaiiView community colleges in HawaiiView online programs in HawaiiRead planning guides before you compare

Frequently asked questions

Questions families ask about colleges in Hawaii

Which is the public flagship university in Hawaii?
The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in Honolulu is the state’s public flagship and primary research university.
How many HBCUs are in Hawaii?
Hawaii has no federally designated HBCUs.
How does the Hawaiʻi Promise Scholarship work?
Hawaiʻi Promise provides last-dollar support for in-state students attending UH community colleges who demonstrate financial need. The program covers direct costs after other aid is applied, verify current eligibility and award terms with UH.
Can mainland students attend UH at reduced tuition?
Hawaii participates in the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE), which can reduce out-of-state tuition for students from participating Western U.S. states. Eligibility is program-specific, verify with UH.
How many Hawaii colleges are flagged for lower earnings on the FAFSA?
1 school in the Department of Education's March 2026 release, the list the 2027-28 FAFSA uses, out of 16 Hawaii schools with an earnings figure. The December 2025 release flagged 3: 2 came off and 0 were added. Every one is named in the Hawaii section of CampusPin's FAFSA lower earnings list. The notice is informational and does not affect financial aid, and it describes a whole school, not a program.
How many Hawaii colleges cost more than a family can borrow from the federal government?
For families earning under $30,000, 3 of the 11 Hawaii colleges reporting the complete federal net-price series charge more after grants than the $25,500 a first-year dependent student and their parents can borrow federally from 1 July 2026; the median college there charges $7,397. For families earning $48,001–$75,000 it is 2 (median $10,881). Net prices are averages for students who received federal aid in a prior cohort, not a quote for any family, and Parent PLUS requires no adverse credit history.

Related blog clusters

Guides that pair well with a Hawaii search

Cost and Financial Aid

College affordability, net price, aid interpretation, borrowing decisions, and budgeting guidance for students and families using CampusPin to compare higher-ed options with more discipline.

Community College

Community-college strategy, affordability, transfer readiness, and credential pathway content for students exploring two-year options through CampusPin.

College Search Strategy

Filter-first search strategy, shortlist building, and planning content for students and parents using CampusPin to discover best-fit colleges and universities.

Help Center

Workflow guides for students searching in Hawaii

Getting Started With CampusPin

A fast orientation to the CampusPin workflow, from your first search through profile review, pins, and next-step planning.

How to Use Filters to Narrow Your College List

A practical help article on how to use CampusPin filters without over-filtering or locking yourself into the wrong criteria too early.

How to Read a CampusPin School Profile

A guide to the major sections inside a CampusPin institution profile and how to interpret them effectively. Each page connects to clearer next steps, related guides, and the CampusPin tools that help you decide.

CampusPin research

National analyses with Hawaii in the data

Each report is built from a checksum-verified snapshot, with full methodology and a downloadable CSV that includes Hawaii.

Comparing schools on price? See our national analysis of how college cost relates to graduation and earnings, an association driven by selectivity and sector, not evidence that a pricier college pays off.

Explore Hawaii

More ways to explore Hawaii colleges

By city

Colleges in Hawaii cities

CampusPin publishes a directory for 1 city in Hawaii, every one where federal data reports at least five colleges.

Browse colleges by city nationwide

What this count of 17 includes

Other sites publish very different totals for Hawaii, and most do not say what they are counting. Here is exactly what this one counts, so you can check it against anyone else's.

By level
10 listed as universities and 7 as community colleges. CampusPin records this as an institution type, and uses it as an approximation of four-year versus two-year; it is not a separately reported degree-level field.
By control
10 public and 7 private. CampusPin records control as public or private only, so private nonprofit and private for-profit institutions are not separated here.
  • Every institution counted has its own CampusPin profile listing the figures behind it and where each one came from, so the total can be checked against its parts rather than taken on trust.
  • This is CampusPin's directory of 3,798 institutions nationwide, not the full federal universe. NCES counted 5,829 Title IV institutions, administrative offices, and U.S. service academies nationwide for 2024-25. That figure includes entities a student would never apply to, which is one reason published totals differ so widely.
  • Figures come from federal sources on a reporting lag, so a very new or very recently closed institution may not be reflected yet. Found something wrong? Tell us and we will correct it.
Full data methodologyCoverage and data quality

Data sources & methodology

College listings for Hawaii are compiled from federal datasets and each institution's own published information.

Sources used across this page

Not every source informs every figure. Each data point draws on the source appropriate to it see the relevant section and the data dictionary for field-level provenance.

  • IPEDS / NCES College Navigator

    Federal enrollment, admissions, tuition, retention, and program data. Released annually with a 1–2 year lag.

  • U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

    Net price by income band, post-graduation earnings, and federal aid context.

  • Institutional websites

    Each school's official admissions, registrar, and financial-aid pages are the authoritative source for current details.

Where a value is unavailable it is shown as unavailable, never as 0, free, or a negative judgment. Always confirm final details with the institution before applying.

Methodology Data dictionary Report a correction

Suggested citation

CampusPin. Colleges in Hawaii. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/colleges-by-state/hawaii