California: aid after freshman year

Four-year colleges in California, ranked by the gap between the average freshman grant and the average grant in later years.

We have IPEDS 2022-23 grant data for 99 four-year colleges in California. At 83 of them, the average grant for continuing undergraduates was lower than the average freshman grant. The median gap was $1,661 per recipient, compared with $1,064 nationally.

The largest gaps: Fresno Pacific University ($11,322), Antelope Valley Community College District ($10,171), California Institute of Technology ($10,015). Median gap at public colleges: $1,045 (47 colleges); at private nonprofits: $2,437 (52 colleges).

Explain the numbers

• Freshman grant: total grant aid to first-time, full-time freshmen divided by the number who got grants (2022-23).
• Later years: the same average for all other degree-seeking undergraduates who got grants, including transfers and part-time students.
• Drop: freshman average minus later-years average. Above zero means later-year recipients averaged less. In California, 83 of 99 colleges are above zero and 78 meet our traditional 4-year filter.
• Median: half of the colleges in California have a smaller drop than $1,661, half larger.
• IPEDS data runs about two years behind; current-year prices come from state reports where available.

Averages across recipients, not a prediction for one student. Colleges with large part-time or online enrollment are marked; read the methodology. See 2026-27 published costs for this state.

Source: IPEDS SFA 2022-23.