I am going to walk you through what the federal government reports about California State University-San Bernardino: who studies there, how admissions work, how much it costs, how much aid is available, and how likely a student is to make it to a degree. It is not all the information your family needs. It is one piece—the one about the university itself—that you need to combine with what your child wants and what you can afford.
What kind of school it is
California State University-San Bernardino is in the city of San Bernardino, in the county of the same name, in the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area. It is public, four-year, and the highest level it reports offering is the doctorate. The Carnegie system, which classifies universities by what they do, places it among research institutions with high activity—a category we normally associate with large schools, laboratories, and serious academic output.
It also classifies it as a “nonresidential” institution. That does not mean it has no dormitories—it does, and we will return to that. It means that, under Carnegie’s standard, either fewer than one out of every four undergraduate students lives on campus or fewer than half study full time. If your child will drive to school instead of living there, what you need to budget is gasoline and travel hours, not just tuition. And if you think they will live at home, I recommend something simple: drive that route yourself on a weekday, at the time they would have class. The real travel time is almost never what the map says.
Carnegie also marks it as a school that receives many transfer students. If your child plans to arrive here after studying somewhere else, get in writing, before enrolling, which courses will count and which will not. That label does not say how many credits people bring in or how many are lost along the way.
One note worth clarifying right away: this university does not appear on the federal lists of historically Black colleges and universities, tribal colleges and universities, or land-grant institutions. They are three different designations, three different histories, and of the 3,012 universities in this census, only 138 have any of them. Not appearing there says nothing about whom it serves or how your child will feel on that campus. Ask that directly, through today’s cultural centers and student organizations, not through a federal label.
Who shares the classroom with your child
In fall 2023, 71 out of every 100 undergraduate students reported being Hispanic or Latino. It is one of the highest proportions among the 519 selective public four-year schools in this census that report the data: nine out of ten of those schools reported an equal or lower proportion. If your child worries about being the only one, the numbers do not show that.
But a high number of Latino students is not the same as support designed for Latino students. The data count how many there are, not whether there is a Spanish-speaking counselor, specific tutoring, or whether those students complete their degrees at a higher rate. And it is the percentage for the whole school, not for the particular major that interests your child. Counting is not the same as serving.
The rest of the picture: there are more women than men—61 out of every 100—and one quarter of undergraduates are between 25 and 64 years old, meaning this is not a campus where everyone has just finished high school. And out of every 100 newly admitted students, 98 reported a California address when applying. This is, above all, a local school.
In total size, California State University-San Bernardino reported 18,925 enrolled students in the official fall count: 16,067 undergraduate students and 2,858 graduate students. It is large—on the larger side among its peers—and it is mainly a bachelor’s-degree school, not a graduate school. Being large does not mean classes are large: ask that directly about the first year and the specific major.
How the academic year works
The calendar uses semesters: two long terms of about 15 weeks each. The institution stated that it accepts credit for AP exams and also what IPEDS calls credit for life experience—independent study, prior work, licenses, certifications. It also reported accepting credit for military training and offers a formal dual-enrollment program for high school students.
Here is the fine print that really matters: saying they accept AP does not mean they award credit for every exam. We do not know what scores they require or how many credits they award, or whether those credits count toward the major your child wants to study. Request the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget the time savings until you have it in hand.
As for what can be studied: the school awarded 4,286 bachelor’s degrees in one year, spread across 24 families of majors. None takes a large share—not even business and administration, the most popular, exceeded 18 out of every 100 degrees. Compared with similar schools, it is in the quarter with the greatest variety of major families represented in its detail. It is a broad offering. But “24 families with a row in the report” does not mean 24 exact majors or guarantee that all awarded degrees that year: verify the precise program that interests your child.
The ratio of students to full-time instructional staff is 19 to 1—average among schools of this type on the overall scale, but in the highest quarter when compared only with similar schools. Both readings are true at the same time, and neither tells you the actual size of a classroom. That must be asked separately.
Additionally, the institution reports structured opportunities such as study abroad, undergraduate research outside the classroom, noncredit developmental education, and pathways to teacher certification.
Admissions: the door is almost always open
Here is the figure that should most change how your family spends its energy. In the 2023 report, California State University-San Bernardino received 12,772 first-time applications and offered admission to 12,548. That is 98 out of every 100. Among the 519 selective public schools in this census, it is among those that accept the most—at least nine out of ten in that group accepted an equal or lower percentage.
Even so, 224 applicants did not receive an offer. Admission is not automatic: the institution stated that it does not have an open-admissions policy, and it marks four things as required—the high school record, grade-point average, completion of the required course plan, and an English-proficiency exam when applicable. The essay and letters of recommendation are marked as not considered. SAT and ACT scores are also not considered for the admissions decision, although that box does not cover scholarships or course placement, which are separate matters.
If your child studied outside the United States or attended high school in Spanish, ask today whether the English-proficiency exam applies to them and what exempts them from taking it. It is one of those things discovered late, when there is no longer comfortable time to resolve it.
The application fee is $70.
Because almost everyone who applies gets in, your child’s energy is better spent completing the application file on time than worrying about competing for a place. But being easy to enter does not mean it is inexpensive or that most people finish. Those two calculations—price and graduation—weigh more than admission, and you will see them later in this same article.
One figure worth considering carefully: out of every 100 admitted students, only 18 enrolled here in 2023. It is a typical number among its peers—neither high nor low. Do not read it as a stain: the fact that most admitted students chose somewhere else does not mean the school is bad, only that each person made a different choice for reasons this record does not capture.
On transfers: in the cohort that entered in 2017, only 1 out of every 100 students transferred to another school without completing here—a low proportion compared with similar schools. At the same time, in the 2023 count, 2,010 students arrived for the first time after studying at another institution. This school receives more than it loses. But that number does not say how many courses were recognized for students who arrived as transfers. Request that list in writing before your child moves.
The price: two numbers, and then the one that really matters
At California State University-San Bernardino, among 604 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and paid the in-state or district rate, whose records reported family EFC income of less than $30,000, the average net price was $3,298. Among 372 students in the same population with family EFC income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $6,381; among 165 students with family EFC income above $110,000, $15,250. For dependent students, the band adds their parents’ income and their own.
The difference between the average for the lower-income band (604 students) and the higher-income band (165 students) is $11,952. Among first-year students who received any scholarship, the average was $6,645.
Among the 519 schools of the same type and control included in this census that reported this figure with the same time coverage, this one falls in the least expensive quarter for lower-income families, after scholarships are deducted. That does not mean it is inexpensive for your family. It is a figure that matters when you build the list of schools to apply to.
The income bands on this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at this public institution, they use the in-state or district rate. The overall average with scholarships, when it appears, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants; it also uses that rate. If your family lives outside the state or district, the calculation is different. Ask for it before applying.
Financial aid: who receives what
Out of every 100 students seeking a degree here, 79 received some scholarship or aid that does not need to be repaid. Among those who did receive it, the annual average was $10,364—that average is not spread across everyone; it describes only those who received something.
Pell, the federal aid for low-income families, reached 58 out of every 100 students—more than half. Applying for this aid here is neither unusual nor exceptional. It is common.
For loans, the picture is different: only 23 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal student loan in academic year 2022–23. Most did not use a federal loan that year—a low proportion compared with similar schools, where seven out of ten, or more, had a higher proportion of students with loans. Among those who did borrow, the average was $6,770 that year.
But be careful not to read this as a promise. A student not borrowing does not mean the year was affordable—they may have covered the difference with scholarships, work, family savings, or another kind of debt that this report does not record. And that average of $6,770 is for only one year, only for federal loans in the student’s name. It does not include what parents borrow through Parent PLUS loans, credit cards, or bank debt. Nor is it the total debt someone has when graduating—for that, all years would have to be added together, and that number is not in this report.
When your child’s aid letter arrives, separate it by hand into three piles: what does not have to be repaid, what must be repaid with interest, and what must be earned through work. Many letters mix them into one column, and that is where families become confused.
The institution also reports an installment tuition payment plan, if you prefer to spread the cost across the year instead of paying it all at once.
Campus life and available support
There is institution-controlled housing, with reported maximum capacity for 1,486 students, on or off campus. It is not required for all full-time, first-time students—but that does not say whether a specific program does require it. There are also meal plans, although the number of meals per week varies by selected plan. Having rooms does not guarantee a bed; request in writing the annual rate, the application deadline, and whether they guarantee a space or place you on a waitlist.
There is ROTC opportunity in two branches: Army and Air Force. Navy is not marked. Being marked does not say whether the program is taken on this specific campus or at another nearby campus—ask by name before building a plan around this.
In athletics, the school competes in the NCAA, with membership confirmed for basketball, baseball, and cross-country or track and field. This does not say which division each sport plays in or whether it awards scholarships—that must be asked directly of the coach for the specific sport.
There is distance education at the undergraduate and graduate levels. In the fall count, 10 out of every 100 undergraduate students took their entire course load online; the other 90 took at least one in-person class. The school also reported having at least one complete program that can be finished entirely through distance education—confirm whether it applies to the level and major that interest your child.
The library has employed staff, physical and digital materials, interlibrary loans, and spending above the federal threshold of $100,000. That is the floor, not a guarantee that it has the databases specific to your child’s major—that must be asked by program name.
Finally, the institution reports academic and career counseling services, student employment, job placement for graduates, on-campus child care, a point of contact for veterans and military personnel, a student veterans organization, and a services page for people with disabilities.
And do those who enter finish?
This is the question that weighs most after money, and here are the complete numbers, without softening them.
Of the cohort that entered full time in fall 2022, 78 out of every 100 were still enrolled or had already graduated one year later—the official retention measure. It is a middle position among its peers: neither among the highest nor the lowest. Among part-time students, retention was 52 out of every 100, but this is a different group with different circumstances—do not combine the two figures as though they measured the same thing.
Now graduation, which is where time becomes real money:
| Time frame | Proportion graduated |
|---|---|
| 4 years | 24 out of every 100 |
| 6 years | 55 out of every 100 |
There are 31 points of difference between the fourth and sixth year. The data do not say how many semesters each person attended and do not report tuition, rent, or wages. The six-year rate, 55 out of every 100, is above the median among the 518 comparable schools in this census.
Of the full cohort of 2,483 students who entered in 2017: 1,357 graduated here within the time frame, 34 transferred without completing and then enrolled at another school, 161 were still enrolled without having finished, and 931 fell into the federal category of “no longer enrolled”—which does not explain why and may include those who graduated after the measured time limit.
Before your child chooses a major here, ask in writing how long the specific program of interest usually takes, how its required courses are scheduled, and how the total cost changes if a fifth year becomes necessary. An extra year is not just time—it is tuition, housing, and food that were probably not in the original budget.
A longer look, at eight years: of a cohort of 5,655 students who entered between 2015 and 2016—combining first-time and transfer students, full time and part time—71 out of every 100 had a degree or certificate from this school by August 2023. Among those who received a Pell grant, the figure was almost identical: 70 out of every 100. This proportion is in the highest quarter compared with similar schools.
A high number is not an individual promise. It describes a cohort that entered years ago, under circumstances that are not necessarily those of your child. What you can do with this figure is ask about current supports in the specific program and about results from more recent cohorts when you speak with the school.
Putting the pieces together
Now you know in detail one of the three pieces your family needs to decide. The data do not say how many semesters each person attended and do not report tuition, rent, or wages.
What this article cannot tell you is what your child wants to study, how far from home they are willing to live, or how much your family can pay without jeopardizing what you need to live. Only you have that second and third piece.
Put them together. From that combination—what the university is, what your child has built and wants, and what the family can sustain—comes a real plan. Not a hunch, not a name that sounds good. A plan.
The information in this article comes from data reported by California State University-San Bernardino to the U.S. Department of Education’s IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System), corresponding mainly to the years 2022-23 and 2023-24. Best College Aid does not represent California State University-San Bernardino or any government agency; this article does not constitute personalized admissions advice.