College of the Desert is a public community college located in Palm Desert, CA. It offers 133 programs for degree/certificate. (Of that, the distance learning opportunity (online degrees/courses) is given to 5 programs).
It is accredited by Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges.
The 2025 tuition & fees of College of the Desert is $1,326 for California residents and $10,174 for out-of-state students. Its tuition & fees is cheaper than that of California public community colleges' average ($10,350).
The school has 12,861 students, which is higher than California community collleges' average (5,324). In addition, 4,122 students have enrolled online exclusively. The students to faculty ratio is 26 to 1, which is lower than the average ratio (23 to 1) of California community colleges.
2025 Tuition & Fees
The following table shows the 2024-2025 tuition & fees, books & supplies, and living costs at College of the Desert. Then, we compare its costs to California community colleges and all U.S. community colleges.
In addition, the chart shows tuition trends over the last 5 years. You can check more comprehensive tuition information on the cost of attendance page.
Offered Degrees/Programs By Area of Study
College of the Desert offers Certificate and Associate's programs. The following table summarizes the number of offered programs by degree types.
Offered Programs and Online Availability
| Certificate | Associate's | Bachelor's |
|---|
| Online Programs | 4 | 1 | NOT OFFERED |
|---|
| Total Programs | 62 | 71 | NOT OFFERED |
|---|
The following tables list each major program along with offered degrees and online availability. The number in each column indicates the number of awarded degrees and/or certificates of the program. It includes completers through on-campus classes, partially online classes, and only online classes.
| Certificate | Associate | Bachelor |
|---|
| Pre-Engineering | NOT OFFERED |
1 completers
|
NOT OFFERED |
|---|
| Certificate | Associate | Bachelor |
|---|
| Mathematics | NOT OFFERED |
7 completers
|
NOT OFFERED |
|---|
| Certificate | Associate | Bachelor |
|---|
| Philosophy | NOT OFFERED |
4 completers
|
NOT OFFERED |
|---|
| Certificate | Associate | Bachelor |
|---|
| Psychology | NOT OFFERED |
137 completers
|
NOT OFFERED |
|---|
| Certificate | Associate | Bachelor |
|---|
| History | NOT OFFERED |
19 completers
|
NOT OFFERED |
|---|
Student Population
There are 12,861 students at College of the Desert including both full-time and part-time students. By gender, 4,623 male students and 6,141 female students are attending the school.
The following table shows the total number of students by gender and attending status at the school. You can check more enrollment information of the school.
Student Population
| Total | Full-Time | Part-time |
|---|
| Total | 10,764 | 3,717 | 7,047 |
|---|
| Male Students | 4,623 | 1,655 | 2,968 |
|---|
| Female Students | 6,141 | 2,062 | 4,079 |
|---|
Distance Learning (Online Degree/Program) Enrollment
Of the 12,861 total students, 8,138 students enrolled through distance learning (4,122 students enrolled exclusively and 4,016 enrolled in some online courses).
Distance Learning Enrollment Distribution
| Total Enrollment | 12,861 | |
|---|
| Enrolled Exclusively in Online Courses | 4,122 |
|---|
| Enrolled in Some But Not All Online Courses | 4,016 |
|---|
| Not Enrolled In Any Online Courses | 4,723 |
|---|
School Profile and Academic Overview
The following table shows directory information and summarizes important academic and admission characteristics for College of the Desert.