College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

CALarge public institution · Overall rank #58 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

A public university in San Luis Obispo, California, ranked #58 nationally by Azimuth.

Who it’s a good fit for

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo is a public university in San Luis Obispo, California, with a degree mix led by Engineering and Business. Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than on to further study, and return is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them, and the typical graduate earns above the median at comparable schools. The model attributes more of that to the factors it measures—field of study, enrollment and the local labor market—than to the remainder it does not explain.

Pell students complete below the rate for the entering cohort as a whole, and mobility is among the highest we track. Affordability is the weakest , at above average, and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands is wide.

The admission rate is well below the median for comparable schools. A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the largest program is not the best-paid.

Cal Poly SLO at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
31.3%
Six-year completion[2]
86.4%
Four-year earnings[3]
$90,662

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$9,896
Median student debt[4]
$18,500
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$35,000

Cal Poly SLO rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo is a public university in San Luis Obispo, California, enrolling 21,996 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Admission is selective: the university admits 31.3% of applicants, against a median of 78.1% for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Once enrolled, students tend to stay.

95.5% return after the first year, well above the peer median of 83.1%. The six-year graduation rate is 86.4%, compared with a peer median of 65.0%.

An estimated 15.5% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the graduation rate describes a majority of the student body but not all of it. The four pillars sit close together near the top of the ranking, with return the strongest and affordability the weakest.

Mobility and access fall between them, completing a profile where every pillar lands in the upper third of nonprofit four-year institutions.

The return pillar leads at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, landing in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Mobility follows closely in the 94th percentile, and access sits in the 89th percentile.

Affordability is the weakest pillar, in the 70th percentile, though all four pillars clear the median for nonprofit four-year institutions. The composite rank is #58 among 1,467 institutions.

19.2% of undergraduates at the university receive Pell Grants. Those students complete at 76.3%, 10.1 percentage points below the rate for the entering cohort as a whole (86.4%).

For access, Azimuth ranks California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo #165 among nonprofit four-year institutions, a standing that coincides with both the Pell share and the completion gap. For mobility, Azimuth ranks the university #85 among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $19,345 more than the model expects for similar students, a result that coincides with that mobility standing.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

Cal Poly SLO rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#58
California#20
West#22

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 94
Access & reach
National percentile: 89
Affordability
National percentile: 70
Return on investment
National percentile: 96

Top-ranked majors

  1. Agriculture, General#1
  2. Plant Sciences#1
  3. City/Urban, Community, and Regional Planning#1

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / Cal Poly SLO briefing

Cal Poly SLO cost & financial aid[6][7]

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo publishes a cost of attendance of $32,265, an average across living arrangements. In-state tuition and fees are $13,596, and out-of-state are $34,665.

Room and board adds $18,792. After aid, the average net price for aid recipients is $16,665, a savings of $15,600 against the sticker price.

Aid covers about 48% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. That runs above the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,031.

Azimuth ranks the university #428 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price drops to $7,529, and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands reaches $20,243.

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo publishes a cost of attendance of $32,265, an average. In-state tuition and fees are $13,596, and room and board are $18,792.

The average net price—what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships—varies sharply by family income. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $7,529; for the middle band ($48,001–$75,000), it is $9,896; and for families earning over $110,000, it is $27,772.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $20,243, a difference of averages, not what any family pays. Azimuth ranks the university #428 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 48% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, an offset of roughly $15,600 against the sticker price. The average net price across all aid recipients is $16,665, which sits above the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,031.

Out-of-state students face a higher published tuition of $34,665, though individual aid packages can shift the final cost. Median federal student debt at completion is $18,500.

That figure is below the peer median of $20,076 for comparable institutions by $1,576. About 83.0% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

For a graduate at the median four-year earnings, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $210 a month if repaid over ten years. Median Parent PLUS borrowing among parent borrowers is $35,000.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$9,896

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Cal Poly SLO

Federal borrowing is widespread at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, with 83.0% of federal aid recipients taking federal loans. Among federal-loan borrowers who completed, the median federal student debt is $18,500.

That median runs below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size), a gap of $1,576. For parent borrowers, a separate population, the median Parent PLUS loan is $35,000.

If repaid over ten years, the estimated monthly payment on the median federal debt is $210.

At California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, the median for federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled four years after completion is $90,662. That is $25,052 above the median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

It sits in the 94th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $19,345 more than the model expects for similar students.

The gap sits at the 95th percentile. Earnings scenarios stretch from $62,554 on the downside to $123,875 on the upside, with a typical outcome of $90,662.

The median federal student debt at completion is $18,500, $1,576 below the $20,076 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size). If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $210 a month.

Earnings sit above the peer median and debt sits below it, so the two point the same way.

Parent borrowers at the university took on a median of $35,000 in Parent PLUS loans, a separate federal borrowing population. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $210.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$18,500
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$35,000

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$210/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$445/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / Cal Poly SLO briefing

Cal Poly SLO career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Azimuth places the return pillar for California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $19,345 more than the model expects for similar students, a figure in the 95th percentile nationally.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $12,041. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $7,304.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,604. Four years after completion, completers at the university who are working and not enrolled post median earnings of $90,662, a level in the 94th percentile.

That figure runs above the peer median of $65,610 by $25,052 among comparable institutions (same type and size).

Among federally aided completers at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo who are working and not enrolled, median earnings four years after completion are $90,662. That is $25,052 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The sample covers completers across all fields, not a single program. Graduates earn about $19,345 more than the model expects for similar students.

That result sits at the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks the university #63 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Typical earnings under the program-mix scenario are $90,662, with a downside of $62,554 and an upside of $123,875. These figures show the range across program clusters.

An estimated 27.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Four years after completion, graduates of California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo earn a median of $90,662, a figure that places the university in the 94th percentile nationally. The median runs above the $65,610 benchmark for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $25,052.

Graduates earn about $19,345 more than the model expects for similar students, a result in the 95th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $12,041.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $7,304. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,604.

Azimuth ranks the university #63 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios anchored on the program mix show a downside of $62,554 and an upside of $123,875.

The university's program-level results are anchored by a set of nationally ranked fields. Business Administration and Management awards 753 degrees and posts median earnings of $110,902, with an Azimuth national rank of #10 in its field.

Computer Science, with 163 degrees awarded, reaches a median of $154,784 four years after completion. Several programs hold the top national rank: Construction Management (123 degrees awarded, $118,331) and Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies (95 degrees awarded, $75,181). Graphic Communications earns 1.83x the national median for its field.

Earnings at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo vary widely by field, with the downside scenario at $62,554 and the upside scenario reaching $123,875. Several programs exceed that upside: Computer Science graduates earn a median of $154,784 four years after completion, Computer Engineering completers earn $148,950, and Electrical Engineering completers earn $125,240.

Construction Management reaches $118,331, and Industrial Engineering completers earn $112,797.

The return picture at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo is strong, but affordability is the weakest of the university's four pillars. The published cost of attendance is $32,265 (an average across living arrangements), and the average net price—what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships—is $16,665.

Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $18,500 in federal student loans. That is $1,576 below the peer median of $20,076 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $210 a month if repaid over ten years. Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $35,000 in Parent PLUS loans.

The spread between the lowest and highest income-band net prices is $20,243, and aid covers about 48% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$12,041
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$7,304
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$19,345

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / Cal Poly SLO briefing

Cal Poly SLO acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo extends offers to 31.3% of applicants, a proportion that falls well below the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size). This means that only a minority of those who apply receive an offer of admission from the university.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
31.3%
25th percentile
1240
Median
1330
75th percentile
1420

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / Cal Poly SLO briefing

What are the largest majors at Cal Poly SLO?[12]

The largest programs at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo span a wide earnings range four years after completion. Computer Science graduates earn a median of $154,784, while Animal Sciences graduates earn $54,805.

Business Administration and Management awards the most degrees, 753 a year, with median earnings of $110,902. Azimuth ranks it #10 nationally within its field.

Computer Science is the highest-earning among the largest programs with published earnings, at $154,784 from 163 degrees awarded, and Azimuth ranks it #26 nationally. Animal Sciences, with 165 degrees a year, sits at the more moderate end, though Azimuth still ranks it #4 nationally in its field.

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo publishes earnings data for 51 bachelor's fields, and 46 hold an Azimuth national rank. The largest program, Business Administration and Management, awarded 753 degrees, ranks #10 nationally, and its completers earn a median of $110,902 four years after completion.

Mechanical Engineering awarded 272 degrees, ranks #14 nationally, and completers earn a median of $106,750 four years after completion. Computer Science, with 163 degrees awarded, ranks #26 nationally and shows a median of $154,784 four years after completion.

Three programs hold the top spot in their field nationally: Construction Management awarded 123 degrees and completers earn $118,331 four years after completion; Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies awarded 95 degrees with median earnings of $75,181; and Graphic Communications awarded 83 degrees and completers earn $79,432 four years after completion.

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo awards bachelor's degrees across 46 programs with an Azimuth national rank and 51 with published four-year earnings data. The program mix is anchored by Engineering, which accounts for 22.9% of degrees awarded, followed by Business at 17.6% and Agriculture & Natural Resources at 10.7%.

The largest programs with published earnings are Business Administration and Management at 753 degrees awarded, Mechanical Engineering at 272 degrees awarded, and Animal Sciences at 165 degrees awarded. The highest-ranked programs are concentrated in applied fields.

Construction Management ranks #1 nationally within its field and #1 in California, with 123 degrees awarded and median earnings of $118,331 four years after completion. Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies also holds a #1 national rank, with 95 degrees awarded and median earnings of $75,181 four years after completion.

Graphic Communications has a benchmark ratio of 1.83x against the national median for its field and median earnings of $79,432. The highest-earning program overall is Computer Science, where graduates earn $154,784 four years out from 163 degrees awarded a year.

Computer Engineering follows at $148,950, with 158 degrees awarded and a national rank of #10 within its field. Strength is spread across the program mix rather than concentrated in one area.

The largest programs carry strong national ranks, and several smaller applied fields hold top positions in their disciplines. 37.8% of degrees awarded are in STEM fields, and the earnings picture is broad: the top five earners all report six-figure medians four years after completion.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Business Administration, Management and Operations 753 degrees awarded
$110,902
Mechanical Engineering 272 degrees awarded
$106,750
Architectural Sciences and Technology 180 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Animal Sciences 165 degrees awarded
$54,805
Computer Science 163 degrees awarded
$154,784
Biology, General 160 degrees awarded
$69,854

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / Cal Poly SLO briefing

How does Cal Poly SLO serve students from different backgrounds?

Azimuth places the university's mobility pillar in the 94th percentile nationally. Pell recipients in the first-time full-time cohort complete at 76.3%, below the overall six-year graduation rate of 86.4% by 10.1 percentage points.

Graduates earn about $19,345 more than the model expects for similar students, a result that sits in the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth places the access pillar for California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The public university admits 31.3% of applicants, a rate far below the peer median of 78.1%.

Pell Grant recipients make up 19.2% of the 21,996 undergraduates, and an estimated 15.5% of students enter as transfers or part-time students.

06 / Cal Poly SLO briefing

What colleges are similar to Cal Poly SLO?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with Cal Poly SLO.

Admissions peerUniversity of California-Santa Barbara33.0% admitted
Comparison with Cal Poly SLO
MeasureCal Poly SLOUniversity of California-Santa Barbara
Peer earnings · 4 years$90,662$70,323-$20,339 vs Cal Poly SLO
Average annual net price$16,665$16,109-$556 vs Cal Poly SLO · lower cost
Admission rate31.3%33.0%
Explore University of California-Santa Barbara →
Higher-admission alternativeClarkson University77.4% admitted
Comparison with Cal Poly SLO
MeasureCal Poly SLOClarkson University
Peer earnings · 4 years$90,662$91,312+$650 vs Cal Poly SLO
Average annual net price$16,665$30,305+$13,640 vs Cal Poly SLO · higher cost
Admission rate31.3%77.4%
Explore Clarkson University →
Nearby alternativeMontana Technological UniversityNearby option · MT
Comparison with Cal Poly SLO
MeasureCal Poly SLOMontana Technological University
Peer earnings · 4 years$90,662$79,369-$11,293 vs Cal Poly SLO
Average annual net price$16,665$16,481-$184 vs Cal Poly SLO · lower cost
Admission rate31.3%91.1%
Lower-cost alternativeUniversity of Florida$4,815 average net price
Comparison with Cal Poly SLO
MeasureCal Poly SLOUniversity of Florida
Peer earnings · 4 years$90,662$77,321-$13,341 vs Cal Poly SLO
Average annual net price$16,665$4,815-$11,850 vs Cal Poly SLO · lower cost
Admission rate31.3%61.3%
Explore University of Florida →
Similar profileSan Jose State UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with Cal Poly SLO
MeasureCal Poly SLOSan Jose State University
Peer earnings · 4 years$90,662$89,614-$1,048 vs Cal Poly SLO
Average annual net price$16,665$13,760-$2,905 vs Cal Poly SLO · lower cost
Admission rate31.3%84.6%
Explore San Jose State University →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings