Metro area directory
Colleges in the Greater Los Angeles Area
CampusPin lists 66 colleges and universities across the Greater Los Angeles metro, 53 universities and 13 community colleges, with 15 public and 51 private institutions across 12 cities.
Greater Los Angeles spans the city of Los Angeles and surrounding communities including Long Beach, Pasadena, Pomona, and the San Fernando Valley. The region mixes large public university campuses, well-known private universities, art and film schools, and a dense network of community colleges.
Greater Los Angeles colleges by the numbers
- Public / private
- 15 public · 51 private
- 4-year / 2-year
- 53 universities · 13 community colleges
- Cities covered
- 12
- Largest by enrollment
- University of Southern California
- Lowest published tuition
- Santa Monica College ($1,156)
- Published tuition range
- $1,156–$68,237
Among the 66 colleges in the Greater Los Angeles area, University of Southern California is the largest by enrollment; Santa Monica College has the lowest published in-state tuition at $1,156; California Institute of Technology is the most selective at a 3% acceptance rate. Published figures are sticker price, not net price, compare net price and outcomes on each profile.
Local labor market
Across all occupations in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports an annual median wage of $53,490 (6,199,940 jobs), in its May 2024 OEWS estimate. This is a whole-economy figure for the metro, not a starting salary or a graduate or field-specific wage, but it is a useful gauge of local pay levels and cost of living when weighing colleges here.
Local pay for common roles
Annual median wage in this metro for occupations tied to popular majors (BLS OEWS, May 2024).
- Software Developers$155,330
- Registered Nurses$133,440
- General and Operations Managers$127,610
- Mechanical Engineers$114,290
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education$100,580
- Accountants and Auditors$93,890
Local pay reflects the metro labor market, not what any one college's graduates earn. For how a school's cost lines up with student outcomes, see college cost vs. graduation and earnings.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024, all occupations (SOC 00-0000), CBSA 31080.
Colleges by city in the Greater Los Angeles area
Los Angeles (33)
- Academy for Jewish Religion CaliforniaUniv · Private
- American Academy of Dramatic Arts-Los AngelesCC · Private
- American Career College-Los AngelesCC · Private
- American Film Institute ConservatoryUniv · Private
- American Jewish UniversityUniv · Private
- Angeles CollegeUniv · Private
- California College of ASUUniv · Private
- California State University-Los AngelesUniv · Public
- CBD CollegeUniv · Private
- Charles R Drew University of Medicine and ScienceUniv · Private
- Dongguk University Los AngelesUniv · Private
- FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & MerchandisingUniv · Private
- Los Angeles City CollegeCC · Public
- Los Angeles County College of Nursing and Allied HealthCC · Public
- Los Angeles Pacific CollegeCC · Private
- Los Angeles Southwest CollegeCC · Public
- Los Angeles Trade Technical CollegeCC · Public
- Loyola Marymount UniversityUniv · Private
- Mount Saint Mary's UniversityUniv · Private
- Occidental CollegeUniv · Private
- Otis College of Art and DesignUniv · Private
- Pacific States UniversityUniv · Private
- Reiss-Davis Graduate SchoolUniv · Private
- Smith Chason CollegeUniv · Private
- Southern California Institute of ArchitectureUniv · Private
- Southwestern Law SchoolUniv · Private
- The Chicago School at Los AngelesUniv · Private
- University of California, Los AngelesUniv · Public
- University of Southern CaliforniaUniv · Private
- West Coast University-Center for Graduate StudiesUniv · Private
- World Mission UniversityUniv · Private
- Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad West Coast Talmudical SeminaryUniv · Private
- Yo San University of Traditional Chinese MedicineUniv · Private
Pasadena (11)
- Art Center College of DesignUniv · Private
- California Institute of TechnologyUniv · Private
- Fuller Theological SeminaryUniv · Private
- Institute of Culinary EducationCC · Private
- Integrity College of HealthUniv · Private
- Los Angeles College of MusicUniv · Private
- Pacific Oaks CollegeUniv · Private
- Pasadena City CollegeCC · Public
- Providence Christian CollegeUniv · Private
- Saybrook UniversityUniv · Private
- University of the PeopleUniv · Private
Glendale (4)
Long Beach (3)
Santa Monica (3)
Whittier (3)
Pomona (2)
Inglewood (2)
Northridge (1)
Malibu (1)
Compare and search across the Greater Los Angeles area
Filter every California college by tuition, size, acceptance rate, and setting, then pin and compare your shortlist side by side, no account required.
Other major U.S. metro areas
- Colleges in the New York City area
- Colleges in the Greater Chicago area
- Colleges in the Dallas–Fort Worth area
- Colleges in the Greater Houston area
- Colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area area
- Colleges in the Washington, D.C. area
- Colleges in the Greater Boston area
- Colleges in the Greater Philadelphia area
Data sources & methodology
College listings for the Greater Los Angeles metro are aggregated live from each institution's record, compiled from federal datasets and the institutions' 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.
Suggested citation
CampusPin. Colleges in the Greater Los Angeles Area. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/colleges-in-metro/los-angeles