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Four-Year-Plus Colleges & Universities*
Los Angeles County

Enrollment, Degrees, Type, Year Founded, Location

CalTech Beckman Institute, Pasadena

Beckman Institute at California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Photo by Canon_vs_nikon, Wikimedia Commons.


Los Angeles County boasts four universities among the nation's top 50, according to the 2022 U.S. News National University Rankings:

- California Institute of Technology (ranked #9, tied with Duke and Johns Hopkins; second in California only to #6 Stanford)
- University of California, Los Angeles (ranked #20)
- University of Southern California (ranked #27)
- Pepperdine University (ranked #49, tied with Lehigh, Northeastern, Ohio State, Purdue-West Lafayette, and Villanova)


Also see:
-- Tuition for Four-Year Colleges & Universities in Los Angeles County
-- Community Colleges & Private 2-Year Colleges in Los Angeles County



School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Academy for Jewish Religion-California Masters 68 Religious 2000 Los Angeles 90024
American Film Institute Conservatory Masters 430 Non-Profit 1967 Los Angeles 90027
American Jewish University Masters 124 Religious 1947 Bel Air
American University of Health Sciences Masters 504 Religious 1994 Signal Hill
ArtCenter College of Design Masters 2,319 Non-Profit 1930 Pasadena
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Azusa Pacific University Doctorate 8,126 Religious 1899 Azusa
Biola University Doctorate 5,551 Religious 1908 La Mirada
California Institute of Technology Doctorate 2,397 Non-Profit 1891 Pasadena
California Institute of the Arts Doctorate 1,444 Non-Profit 1961 Valencia
California State Polytechnic Univ., Pomona Doctorate 29,456 Public 1938 Pomona
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
California State Univ., Dominguez Hills Masters 17,837 Public 1960 Carson
California State Univ., Long Beach Doctorate 40,190 Public 1949 Long Beach 90840
California State Univ., Los Angeles Doctorate 27,513 Public 1947 Los Angeles 90032
California State Univ., Northridge Doctorate 40,108 Public 1958 Northridge
Cedars-Sinai Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences Doctorate 40(2) Non-Profit 2008 Los Angeles 90048
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Charles R. Drew University of Medicine & Science Doctorate 895 Non-Profit 1966 Los Angeles 90059
Claremont Graduate University (Claremont Colleges) Doctorate 1,953 Non-Profit 1925 Claremont
Claremont Lincoln University Masters 325 Non-Profit 2011 Claremont
Claremont McKenna College (Claremont Colleges) Masters 1,422 Non-Profit 1946 Claremont
Claremont School of Theology Doctorate 237 Non-Profit 1885 Claremont
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Columbia College Hollywood Bachelors 493 Non-Profit 1952 Tarzana
Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) Masters 1,764 For-Profit 1969 Los Angeles 90015
Fuller Theological Seminary Doctorate 2,191 Religious 1947 Pasadena
Harvey Mudd College (Claremont Colleges) Bachelors 905 Non-Profit 1955 Claremont
Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion Doctorate N/A Religious 1954 Los Angeles 90007
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences at City of Hope Doctorate 95 Non-Profit 1994 Duarte
Keck Graduate Institute Doctorate 573 Non-Profit 1997 Claremont
Life Pacific College Masters 551 Religious 1925 San Dimas
Logos Evangelical Seminary Doctorate 2,036(2) Religious 1989 El Monte
Loyola Marymount University Doctorate 10,184 Religious 1865 Los Angeles 90045
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Mount Saint Mary's University (3) Doctorate 2,625 Religious 1925 Los Angeles 90049/ Brentwood
Occidental College Masters 1,964 Non-Profit 1888 Los Angeles 90041
Otis College of Art & Design Masters 1,252 Non-Profit 1917 Los Angeles 90045
Pacific Oaks College Masters 1,175 Non-Profit 1945 Pasadena
Pardee RAND Graduate School Doctorate 132 Non-Profit 1970 Santa Monica
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Pepperdine University Doctorate 10,446 Religious 1937 Malibu
Pitzer College (Claremont Colleges) Bachelors 1,168 Non-Profit 1963 Claremont
Pomona College (Claremont Colleges) Bachelors 1,764 Non-Profit 1887 Claremont
Providence Christian College Bachelors 123 Religious 2005 Pasadena
Scripps College (Claremont Colleges) (3) Bachelors 1,116 Non-Profit 1926 Claremont
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
Southern California Institute of Architecture Masters 522 Non-Profit 1972 Los Angeles 90013
Southern California University of Health Sciences Doctorate 1,564 Non-Profit 1911 Whittier
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology Doctorate 3,260 Non-Profit 2008 Los Angeles 90017
The Master's University & Seminary Doctorate 2,435 Religious 1927 Santa Clarita
Touro College Los Angeles Bachelors 2,131(2) Non-Profit 2005(4) West Hollywood
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
University of Antelope Valley Masters 731(2) For-Profit 2009 Lancaster
University of California, Los Angeles Doctorate 46,116 Public 1919 Los Angeles 90095
University of La Verne Doctorate 6,201 Non-Profit 1891 La Verne
University of Southern California Doctorate 49,318 Non-Profit 1880 Los Angeles 90089
University of the West Doctorate 180 Religious 1990 Rosemead
School Highest Degree Student Enrollment (1) Type of Institution Year Founded Location
University of West Los Angeles Doctorate 251 For-Profit 1966 Inglewood/ Chatsworth
West Coast University-Los Angeles Doctorate 2,581 For-Profit 1909 North Hollywood
Western University of Health Sciences Doctorate 3,788 Non-Profit 1975 Pomona
Whittier College Masters 1,387 Non-Profit 1887 Whittier
Woodbury University Masters 1,036 Non-Profit 1884 Burbank

* Listed institutions, as of 2022, are accredited by a regional accreditation association, such as the Western Association of Schools & Colleges (WASC), or other similar body.
N/A Information not available
(1) Except where otherwise noted, enrollment numbers are for 2021-2022 from the National Center of Education Statistics
(2) Enrollment numbers are for 2022 from UnivStats
(3) Primarily a women’s college
(4) Year in which campus in West Hollywood established


Marymount California University, once a Catholic two-year college, founded in 1932, that later expanded into a four-year college, closed its doors in April 2022. The college found its enrollment dropping and could no longer sustain its programs. The campus in Rancho Palos Verdes was purchased, shortly after its closing, by UCLA to be operated as a satellite campus of that university.



The University of Southern California is a private research university of international distinction, and as such, the oldest in the Western United States. The university attracts students from all 50 states and 107 other countries.


California Institute of the Arts was founded in 1961 with the help of Walt and Roy Disney and Lulu May Von Hagen. It merged the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music (founded 1883) and Chouinard Art Institute (founded 1921).


Touro College Los Angeles is the only regionally-accredited Orthodox Jewish college in the West Coast.


The California Graduate Institute merged with The Chicago School of Professional Psychology in 2008. The California Graduate Institute was the first independent graduate school of psychology in the nation, founded in 1968.


Whittier College was founded in 1887 by members of the Society of Friends (Quakers).


Cleveland Chiropractic College Los Angeles, founded in 1911, closed in 2011.


UCLA is the only campus among the nation's top 10 research universities that was established in the 20th century.


Aerial View of UCLA campus, looking northwest, 1930s. Sunset Boulevard curves in upper part of image. Photo from UCLA Archive.
Click on image for larger image.


UCLA has the largest student enrollment of the University of California Campuses. Source: University of California.


In 2021, USC enrolled 14,992 foreign students - the fourth largest enrollment of foreign students at any U.S. institution of higher learning. Locally, UCLA followed with 10,273 foreign students. Source: Open Doors Data.