Public · Northridge, CA
California State University-Northridge
Get to know the college, from admissions and cost to life on campus.
Overview
CSUN is what an accessible public university looks like at full scale: nine colleges, close to 40,000 students, admission built on a formula (the CSU eligibility index) rather than a file read. It's the country's #2 producer of bachelor's degrees to Hispanic students and trains more of LA Unified's teachers than any other university. Nobody hands you a program here; you pick a college and build your own path.
About California State University-Northridge
- Type
- Public University
- Setting
- Urban
- Undergraduates
- 32,691
Admissions
- Early Decision/Early Action
- No
- Accepts Common App
- —
Cost
Tuition and aid
- Full cost of attendance
- $20,014per year
- In-state tuition
- —
- Out-of-state tuition
- —
- Average family income
- $32,895
- Students with a school grant
- 64%
- Average school grant
- $6,098
- Average federal debt
- $15,000at graduation
- Need-blind
- —
- Meets full need
- —
- Merit scholarships
- Yes
- CSS Profile
- —
- International aid
- —
Academics
- Majors offered
- 75
- Freshmen who return
- 73%
- Notable
- 150+ studentsserved each semester by the National Center on Deafness, the country's largest mainstreaming program of its kind
Students
Campus life
- Setting
- Urban
- Location
- Northridge, CA
- Live on campus
- —
- Student organizations
- —
- Varsity sports
- —
CSUN runs as a commuter school first: the campus can empty out to a few hundred people by the weekend, and students describe building a social life here as work you do yourself, not something that happens to you. "Trying to make a connection outside of class was difficult," Daily Sundial writer Samuel Cortez wrote, a common thread in student reviews too. What works: Themed Living Communities for students who do live on campus, clubs, and orientation built specifically to force those first connections. The Park Apartments dorms sit walking distance from class with pools and 24-hour study space, and the surrounding Valley itself stays quiet and suburban rather than a college town.
Summarized by Spike from what students write: Daily Sundial, CSUN Student Life.
Outcomes
- Earnings 6 years in
- $50,095
- Graduate within 6 years
- 57%
- Average federal debt
- $15,000
- Graduates go into
- Mark Edward Harris, Bridget Ho, Samantha and Mark Sirota
Reviews
Been to California State University-Northridge, or visited? Yours would be the first.
Spike Rankings 2027
Where California State University-Northridge ranks.
- #127Best Collegesof 232 ranked
- #15Best Colleges for First-Generation and Low-Income Studentsof 232 ranked
Ranked on federal data about graduation, earnings and cost. How Spike ranks colleges
Common questions
Questions about California State University-Northridge
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