Costa Mesa, California · Private nonprofit · 4-year · Midsize city
Overview
Located in Costa Mesa, California, Vanguard University of Southern California is a private nonprofit four-year institution. Its campus is in a midsize city. It enrolled 2,246 students in fall 2024, including 1,960 undergraduates and 286 graduate students. Its religious affiliation is Assemblies of God Church.
Vanguard University of Southern California offers certificates, bachelor's degrees, and master's degrees across 43 programs. Its largest programs by number of graduates are Psychology, General, Business Administration and Management, and Exercise Science and Kinesiology. It awarded 557 degrees and certificates in 2024-25. 12 of its programs can be completed entirely online.
70% of full-time first-year students return for a second year. The student-to-faculty ratio is 13 to 1.
Key figures
2,246
Students enrolled
70%
First-year retention
557
Degrees and certificates awarded, 2024-25
43
Programs and majors
13:1
Student-to-faculty ratio
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Delivery modes
CampusOnlineHybrid
Program levels
CertificateBachelorMaster
Programs and majors offered 43
Graduate counts are degrees and certificates awarded in each program between July 2024 and June 2025. Largest fields are listed first.
Retention is for students who started in fall 2023 and returned in fall 2024.
First-year retention, full-time students
70%
First-year retention, part-time students
56%
Student-to-faculty ratio
13:1
Degrees and certificates awarded
Awards conferred between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025.
Bachelor's degrees
406
Master's degrees
110
Certificates under 1 year
3
Postbaccalaureate certificates
30
Post-master's certificates
8
Enrollment
Students, fall 2024
2,246
Undergraduates, fall 2024
1,960
Graduate students, fall 2024
286
Full-time, fall 2024
83%
Students over the full 2024-25 year
2,562
Undergraduates, 2024-25
2,147
Graduate students, 2024-25
415
Full-time, 2024-25
76%
Size category
1,000 to 4,999 students
Student body
Share of all students enrolled during 2024-25. Small groups can round to zero and are not listed.
Women
67%
Men
33%
White
31%
Hispanic or Latino
43%
Black or African American
6%
Asian
5%
Two or more races
3%
International (U.S. nonresident)
3%
Race or ethnicity unknown
9%
Online and flexible learning
Distance education in 2024-25.
Programs that can be completed fully online
12
Programs with a fully online option
5
Online undergraduate programs
Yes
Online graduate programs
Yes
Students studying fully online
18%
Students taking some online courses
59%
Weekend or evening classes
Yes
Campus and services
Setting
Midsize city
Academic calendar
Semester
Religious affiliation
Assemblies of God Church
Carnegie classification
Master's Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Athletic association
NCAA
Athletic conference
Pacific West Conference
President
Michael Beals
Services and opportunities
Study abroad, Undergraduate research, Teacher certification, Academic and career counseling, Student employment services, Job placement for graduates, Accepts AP credit, Credit for life experience
For veterans and service members
Yellow Ribbon Program, Credit for military training, Dedicated veterans contact, Student veteran organization