California Lutheran University
A good fit for students who want accessible admissions and students who prefer a mid-size campus. no major red flags in the data. solid earnings of $60,200 within 10 years; financial aid brings net price below sticker.
About This School
California Lutheran University is a private nonprofit institution located in Thousand Oaks, California with approximately 2,296 undergraduate students enrolled. California Lutheran University has an open or accessible admissions process, with an acceptance rate of 76%. The average net price after financial aid is $30,109 per year. The graduation rate is 70%, and the typical graduate earns $60,200 within 10 years of enrollment.
California Lutheran University is a private university in Thousand Oaks, California, United States. It was founded in 1959 and is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, but is nonsectarian. It opened in 1960 as California Lutheran College and was California's first four-year liberal arts college and the first four-year private college in Ventura County. It changed its name to California Lutheran University on January 1, 1986.
Located in the comfortable suburbs of Thousand Oaks, this small Lutheran-affiliated university offers a genuinely accessible path to a degree — an 89% acceptance rate and median debt of just $18,970 make it a financially reasonable choice for many families. The $60,200 median earnings at 10 years are decent but not exceptional, so it's best suited for students drawn to specific strong programs rather than those betting on a name-brand return on investment. The 74% graduation rate is worth watching — roughly 1 in 4 students doesn't finish, so if you're someone who needs strong academic support or community, visit campus and ask hard questions about what resources are actually in place.
Popular Programs
Percentage of degrees awarded. Source: College Scorecard.
Notable Alumni
Source: Wikidata. Used for context only.
Admissions
SAT Scores
ACT Scores
Cost & Financial Aid
Net Price by Family Income
Average annual cost after grants/scholarships, by household income. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
Financial Aid
Full Cost
After Graduation
Earnings 6 Years After Enrollment, by Gender
Gap: 10% less for female graduates. National avg ~16%.
What Each Major Actually Earns
Median earnings four years after graduation, by major, next to the national median for that same major at every college. The school-wide average hides this: at most schools the spread between the best- and worst-paying majors is far wider than the gap between schools.
California Lutheran University graduates earn most above the national rate in Sociology ($67,998 vs $52,657 nationally), and most below it in Computer Science ($77,030 vs $107,009).
| Major | Grads | Here | National | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 147 | $76,916 | $68,257 | +$8,659 |
| Psychology, General | 100 | $59,153 | $50,706 | +$8,447 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness | 62 | $59,820 | $54,562 | +$5,258 |
| Biology, General | 46 | $64,939 | $57,214 | +$7,725 |
| Communication and Media Studies | 43 | $61,653 | $56,359 | +$5,294 |
| Political Science and Government | 31 | $60,243 | $63,293 | −$3,050 |
| Accounting and Related Services | 28 | $89,573 | $76,194 | +$13,379 |
| Computer Science | 26 | $77,030 | $107,009 | −$29,979 |
| Music | 24 | $32,316 | $42,892 | −$10,576 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | 24 | $60,806 | $53,072 | +$7,734 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods | 16 | $83,310 | $86,176 | −$2,866 |
| Sociology | 16 | $67,998 | $52,657 | +$15,341 |
U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard field-of-study data. Median earnings of graduates working and not enrolled four years after completing a bachelor's degreehere. Majors with too few graduates to report are omitted for privacy, so this is not the school's full program list.
Will This School Pay Off?
Solid return. Earnings outpace debt, though major choice matters.
Earnings data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. These are means across all graduates, not specific to any major.
Student Body
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2,296 undergraduates).
Contact & Location
Official Links
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See How Colleges Compare
California Lutheran University is one of thousands of colleges in our data studies, each built from the same U.S. Department of Education data shown on this page. Compare schools head to head:
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the acceptance rate at California Lutheran University?
California Lutheran University has an acceptance rate of 76%, based on the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Education.
Is California Lutheran University hard to get into?
Not especially. California Lutheran University has an acceptance rate of 76%, so admissions are relatively accessible for applicants who meet the requirements.
How much does California Lutheran University cost?
The average net price at California Lutheran University is about $30,109 per year after grants and scholarships, based on federal data. Your actual cost depends on your family's finances and aid package.
What is the graduation rate at California Lutheran University?
California Lutheran University has a graduation rate of 70%, according to U.S. Department of Education data.
Sources & Methodology
Primary data source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Accessed via automated sync. Latest values may come from different reporting years depending on the metric.
School overview from Wikipedia. Used for context only, not as a primary data source for admissions, cost, or outcomes claims.
- Earnings figures are institution-level averages, not major-specific.
- Some metrics are based on Title IV financial aid recipients only.
- Some values may be privacy-suppressed or rolled up by the Department of Education.
- Contact the school directly for current admissions requirements and costs.
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