Santa Barbara City College

Best Community Colleges: Santa Barbara City College (CA)

The 104-year-old Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) is located in Santa Barbara, California, on a campus surrounded by stunning ocean views. The junior college serves the south coast of Santa Barbara County.

The community college offers more than 50 certificate programs and 80 degrees, with an average class size of 28. SBCC has an enrollment of 20,000 students, of which 7,500+ are full-time.

57% of full-time students at SBCC transfer to four-year colleges; more than half of those ultimately earn a bachelor’s degree. Agreements with 76 colleges (in and out of California) guarantee that SBCC credits are accepted for transfer; several schools ensure admission if a student meets academic requirements. The college’s Transfer Achievement Program (TAP) helps students make informed decisions in their planning for the transition from SBCC to a four-year university.

SBCC’s Express-to-Success program uses small learning communities to assist students through first-year remedial courses to yield a significant rise in students’ course completion.

The college has a diverse student population and serves many traditionally underserved students, including an ever-increasing population of Hispanics. Hispanic students, who consist of 30+% of the student population, have achieved a notable three year-graduation/transfer rate of 48%.

Aspen Institute named Santa Barbara City College the 2013 co-winner of its prestigious Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. The Aspen Institute also recognized the college as a 2011 Finalist for the same prize. Santa Barbara City College ranked #23 in the CNN Money listing of community colleges in 2012.