California Institute of Arts & Technology
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Overview
California Institute of Arts & Technology is located in a large city with a population of more than 250,000. It is in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA area.
Highlights
Largest undergraduate program (113): Computer Systems Technology
Address
2820 Camino Del Rio South Suite 100
San Diego, CA 92108
www.ciat.edu
Additional links
SOURCES:
Accreditation:
good
Institutional Control
California Institute of Arts & Technology is a private for-profit organization.
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Accreditation
Accreditation provides important oversight over a school's instructional practices and institutional stability.
California Institute of Arts & Technology holds an accreditation from one of the national accreditors. Credits earned from the national accreditors are often not accepted by schools holding the more prestigious regional accreditation, and it's important to verify that your credits will transfer if you are considering an eventual switch to another school.
Accreditation History
Accrediting Council for Continuing Education and Training (Accredited December 15, 2015 - present)
  • The accreditation was recently renewed on August 22, 2019.
  • The next accreditation review is scheduled for December 31, 2021.
Undergraduate Students
Not all students attend their first college full time to completion. While some schools are focused on those that population, many schools focus on transfer and or part time students. What types of of student does this school support.
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Admissions
Open Admissions
California Institute of Arts & Technology is an open admissions school and accepts any student who applies.
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Admissions Details
Here are some important dates and little tidbits. Please double-check this information on the California Institute of Arts & Technology's webpage for the most up-to-date and accurate answers! We update this information with each school's annual reporting, but information can change unexpectedly. Select any item to view the details.
Admissions Criteria & Qualifications
Admissions Criteria & Qualifications
Application Fee & Common App
Application Fee & Common App
California Institute of Arts & Technology has an undergraduate application fee of $0. We did not find California Institute of Arts & Technology on the Common Application site. Keep in mind that it never hurts to inquire with an Admissions office to see whether they might be willing to waive your application fee.
Credits accepted from new students
Credits accepted from new students
California Institute of Arts & Technology accepts the following credits:
  • Open admission (school accepts any student who applies)
  • Dual credit (college credit earned while in high school)
Programs
California Institute of Arts & Technology program offerings
What award level are you pursuing?
Associate's Degree
Computer Systems Technology
A program that prepares individuals to apply basic engineering principles and technical skills in support of professionals who use computer systems. Includes instruction in basic computer design and architecture, programming, problems of specific computer applications, component and system maintenance and inspection procedures, hardware and software problem diagnosis and repair, and report preparation
Note: The name and definition of this program are based on Department of Education CIP code descriptions, which ensures uniform reporting across schools in the US. Please check this school's website for detailed program information and their specific course descriptions._
Choose how to look at program completions
By Level
By Race/Origin
By Gender
Completions in Computer Systems Technology by award level
050100150200Number of graduates2010201120122013201420152016201720182019
Associate's Degree
0-1 Year Certificate
Recently College Scorecard released data on starting salaries and cumulative federal student debt for each school/program combination with sufficient graduates to allow for privacy concerns with data releases. Shown in the box plots below are data for all schools offering computer engineering technologies/technicians (which may contain several related fields) by award level. If a value is reported for California Institute of Arts & Technology, then that is shown in blue.
Starting Salaries
$0$20,000$40,000$60,000$80,000Bachelor'sAssociate'sCertificate
Cumulative Federal Student Loan Debt
$0$10,000$20,000$30,000$40,000$50,000Bachelor'sAssociate'sCertificate
What can I do if I study Computer Systems Technology?
Below we list the careers that the US Department of Education suggests are best fits for people who studied computer systems technology. You can get an idea of salary and the level of education you'll need, as well as whether this is a growing or shrinking career field. Sometimes this list of recommended careers doesn't match what people who earned this degree are really doing. Our computer systems technology program page has much more information about the interplay between study in this field and possible careers. Select any table row to learn more about listed career.
Salary
Salary distribution for people with this Career
Median
Middle 50%
Middle 80%
Education
No college
Some College
Bachelor's
Master's
Doct./Prof.
Growth Rate
The projected percentage growth in employment over the next 10 years
Costs
Undergraduate costs
Here's a quick summary of costs to attend California Institute of Arts & Technology. You will find the most up-to-date information at their website for admissions.
View
All
Charge
Annual tuition
Miscellaneous (living off campus)
Miscellaneous (living with family)
Off-campus room and board
Per-credit charges
Cost
$14,040
$6,846
$3,395
$20,496
$585
SOURCES:
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Net price: the best estimate for the cost to attend
Most schools publish tuition rates that give them room to offer both scholarships and financial aid where applicable. Your best estimate of what might pay is to see what others with similar family incomes have paid. A more tailored and accurate estimate is available at this school's net price calculator.
Understanding net price

With their net price calculators, many colleges and universities give an idea of what merit-based aid might accompany need-based aid. For schools that share such data, we also provide financial aid data in the Finanical Aid sections.

There are some caveats to consider when using the net price estimates:

  • The net price calculation is weighted by this school's proportion of students living on- and off-campus and this school's estimate of off-campus costs, which may cause the net price methodology be a bit inconsistent from school to school.
  • Parental income and student financial aid eligibility is sometimes more complicated than the simple family income number reported here.
  • The net price calculation for all students is inclusive of students who received any institutional or government aid, but at the family income levels the net price only considers the tuition paid by those who qualified for federal aid.

You can get a little better guess at what you would pay by using this school's net price calculator.

Percentage of students receiving any aid
The donut, based on 53 full-time first-time degree seeking students at California Institute of Arts & Technology, shows the percentage of those who received any financial aid (including merit-based scholarships), subdivided by family income.
6%
Aid type and family income
Federal: $0-30K
Federal: $30K-48K
Federal: $48K-75K
Federal: $75K-110K
Federal: Above $110K
Only institutional
Net price by family income
All Incomes
Let's look over the past few years at what freshmen who received any financial aid actually paid for tuition, fees, books, and living expenses on average, and how that compares to the tuition usually paid for other private universities in your context group. Public universities only report net price for in-state students.
2018$0$10,000$20,000$30,000$40,000$50,000
Chart explanation
California Institute of Arts & Technology
On the blue curve, we see how the net annual cost to attend California Institute of Arts & Technology has changed over the years.
Context Schools
The shading shows the spread of the net price for the context schools. The dark shading shows the middle 50% of context schools, and the light shading shows all but the smallest and largest 10%.
Customize your context group using the gear at the top of the page!
Find your net price estimate: www.ciat.edu/net-price-calculator/...
Not so much?
Historic Annual Costs
See how this school's published costs have changed over the years, and how their cost trends compare with other private schools.
Published costs may have little to do with what you actually pay

It's important to remember that a school's published costs may not be indicative of what it will actually cost to attend. Time magazine wrote about this in their article Yes, you can get a college to cut its tuition price. Nonetheless, this inflation-adjusted look at the historic annual costs for tuition, fees, books, and supplies can give you an idea of the costs you might expect in the coming years. Comparing the total costs inclusive of room and board (if applicable) with the annual net price estimates in the previous tab will help you determine the financial aid package to expect.

Private and public universities' charges are difficult to compare due to the in-state and out-of-state price differences of public universities, and therefore we only compare California Institute of Arts & Technology to other private schools within your chosen context group.

Undergraduate tuition, fees, books, and supplies over time
201720182019$0$10,000$20,000$30,000$40,000
Chart explanation
California Institute of Arts & Technology
On the blue curve, we see how the published annual cost to attend California Institute of Arts & Technology has changed over the years.
Context Schools
The shading shows the spread of the annual cost for the context schools. The dark shading shows the middle 50% of context schools, and the light shading shows all but the smallest and largest 10%.
Customize your context group using the gear at the top of the page!
Financial Aid
Financial aid overview

Understanding the rules and process that determine who gets financial aid can be intimidating. Here are some quick links to help:

  • Visit California Institute of Arts & Technology's Net Price Calculator for the most accurate estimate of your anticipated costs. Every school publishes a Net Price Calculator that does its best to give you a fair estimate of what you might expect to pay. Many calculators consider your high school record as part of the calculation. This will be far more accurate than any of the averages or published tuition values that you see here.
  • FederalStudentAid, a government site that will walk you through the federal financial aid process. There are a number of kinds of student loans and other aid, and this site can walk you through all of the choices you will need to make.

Undergraduate Outcomes
Graduation Rate
Approximately 93% of undergraduate students are full-time. In the last reporting year, 72% of full-time first-time students received a degree within 150% of the expected time for completion.
72%
Time to complete
On time
50% more time
Context: Graduation rate
These numbers reflect the percentage of full-time first-time college students who completed any degree or certificate within 150% of the expected time.
SOURCES:
Fewer details
Context and trends: Repayment Rate
How much progress do you think you'll be able to make towards paying down your college loans seven years after leaving school? In our research, we discovered that a surprisingly large number of students don't default on their loans, but also aren't making progress in paying down their principal amount. The percentages here count alumni who have decreased their loan amounts by at least $1.
Context and trends: are the loan default rates as small as possible?
The default rate is the percentage of students who are already delinquent on their loans within three years of leaving the school. If a school has a high default rate, that sends an alarm out that the students' educations are not sufficient to earn enough to repay those loans. Read below for details on the typical loan burden, and keep in mind that a low default rate may be more important than loan amounts in predicting your future success.
Loan burden
At California Institute of Arts & Technology, 0% of full-time degree-seeking freshmen receive federal student loans. We have much more details about the full loan burden students experience in our Cost and Financial Aid Section.
Context: Percentage of freshmen with federal loans
0%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Not so much?
Classroom Experience
Student attention at California Institute of Arts & Technology
Schools are required to report the ratio of students per instructor, but look for a small number of students for every full-time instructor as your best indicator of personal attention and a modern well-integrated curriculum.
32.3150204060Full-time inst.Any inst.
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Full-time and long-term instructors at California Institute of Arts & Technology
Full-time faculty are mostly likely to be on campus and available for interaction, and to craft up-to-date courses and programs. California Institute of Arts & Technology has 54% full-time instructors, and this is near the middle of the context schools' percentages of full-time instructors. Faculty with multi-year contracts provide additional stability and commitment to the school and its students.Within the full-time instructors at California Institute of Arts & Technology, none have multi-year employment contracts. Of the context schools, only 31% have instructors with multi-year contracts.
Full-time instructors
54%
Long-term instructors
0%
SOURCES:
Not so much?
Faculty Diversity
Here's an opportunity to explore the faculty's diversity. For many schools, attracting a diverse teaching faculty can be a challenge. It's important to judge their success with the reality check of what their peer schools have accomplished.
Number of full-time instructors
The chart shows male instructors to the left, and female to the right, with the races/origins included along the bars. Select the context graph to see how this diversity profile compares to the schools that interest you.
Not ReportedMultiracialHispanicPacific IslanderWhite024681012Men024681012Women
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Housing
No Student Housing Available
This school does not report any housing for students.
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Activities and Services
Special academic opportunities
  • Weekend college
Undergraduate services offered
  • Academic/career counseling services
  • Employment services for current students
  • Placement services for program completers
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Programs for Veterans
If you are a veteran, it's worth digging around to find a military-friendly campus. We think this article about how colleges might help veterans might be a good starting point for questions to ask the Admissions office before you choose to attend. It's also good to be aware that many for-profit schools are behaving as predators, hungry for GI Bill dollars. Watching out for those schools is no different for veterans than for all students: judge very critically using our "Student Satisfaction and Success" tab for undergraduate programs. We wish we had the same data to support graduate programs; however, we think the undergraduate data is a good starting point for judging overall quality.
  • Dedicated point of contact for support services for veterans, military servicemembers, and their families
  • Yellow Ribbon Program
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Student Body
Study Types
About 93% of students are full-time. About 15% of students take all of their courses via distance education, while another 0% take some courses online.
Full-time
93%
Online classes
15%
SOURCES:
Context: Student body size
California Institute of Arts & Technology enrolled 776 students over the past academic year. The the student body size is near the middle of the context schools.
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Undergraduate student gender
Is the gender balance of California Institute of Arts & Technology students important to you? You can see the breakdown in this donut chart.
Gender
Men
Women
SOURCES:
Undergraduate student race/origin
California Institute of Arts & Technology reports that 74% of students are minority, which is near the middle of the context schools. Similarly, this school's 0 of international students is near the middle proportion of international students within the context schools.
Race/Origin
White
Black
Pacific Islander
Hispanic
Asian
American Indian
Multiracial
Not Reported
SOURCES:
Fewer details
Context: Gender Balance
It is very difficult for many types of schools to achieve a gender balance, and this context is valuable in evaluating the balance at California Institute of Arts & Technology.
92%8%0%20%40%60%80%100%MenWomen
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Context: Percentage of women
California Institute of Arts & Technology is a single-sex institution.
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Context: Student race/origin
Here is how California Institute of Arts & Technology compares to the rest of the context group in terms of diversity in the student race and origin.
17%23%18%31%1%1%7%3%0%20%40%60%80%100%InternationalPacific IslanderAmerican IndianNot ReportedMultiracialBlackHispanicWhiteAsian
Freshman residences

A high proportion of international and out-of-state students speaks to reputation and offers an opportunity for diverse interactions in and out of class.

Freshman residence
In-state
Out-of-state
International
Not Reported
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Student age distribution
The age distribution at a school can tell you a lot about its mission. If you're looking for a traditional undergraduate experience, you may prefer to see students who are mostly younger than 25 (lighter shades), but if you want support as a returning student, a large number of students 25 and older (darker shades) may better suit your needs.
Age range
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Unknown
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School Finances
California Institute of Arts & Technology: What its budget can tell you about classroom quality
Where a school spends and collects its money can suggest a lot about the educational experience it offers. The tabs below offer a look at spending that is important for the quality of your experience if you attend.
Instructional spending
Student services spending
Context and trends: Instructional expenditures per student
Instructional expenses are primarily the salary and benefits paid to the heart of a school: its full-time instructors. High expenditures in this area suggest care in hiring enough highly qualified full-time faculty to provide personal attention and up-to-date subject-area excellence.
20172018$0$2,000$4,000$6,000$8,000$10,000$12,000
Chart explanation
California Institute of Arts & Technology
On the blue curve, we see how the instructional expenses per student at California Institute of Arts & Technology have changed over the years.
Context Schools
The shading shows the spread of the instructional expenses per student for the context schools. The dark shading shows the middle 50% of context schools, and the light shading shows all but the smallest and largest 10%.
All values have been adjusted for inflation. Customize your context group using the gear at the top of the page!
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Does incoming revenue consistently cover expenses?

California Institute of Arts & Technology is a private for-profit school, meaning that its annual goal is to make a profit for its shareholders. The other types of schools are public or not-for-profit, and profit is not a goal.

Total revenue and expenses by category
We divided revenue and expenses for California Institute of Arts & Technology into categories to give some insight to what may have influenced peaks and ditches in the chart above. The purple shades correspond most directly to student education. The blue shades, auxiliary expenses and revenue, are often related to room and board. We show investment gains and losses in apricot.
20172018$0$5M$10M$15MRevenue$0$5M$10M$15MExpense
Tuition and fees revenue
Government appropriations etc.
Other revenue
Instructional expenses
Student services expenses
Academic support expenses
Institutional support expenses