Cal Poly enrolls fewer low-income students than other CSU universities, report shows

Cal Poly has the smallest percentage of low-income students in the California State University system, a new report shows — though university officials say they are working to make the San Luis Obispo college more financially attainable.

The report was released in mid-September by the Cal State Student Association and the Institute for College Access and Success.

It used California State University data to analyze each of the system’s 23 campuses and determine how they compared in regards to attainability for low-income students.

The report analyzed how many Pell Grant students are admitted annually, their graduation rates compared to non-grant recipients, plus the cost of living on each campus and how many hours low-income students must work to cover those costs.

Pell Grants are federal money given to students who show an exceptional financial need — more than 50% go to students whose families earn less than $20,000 a year, according to the Education Data Initiative. They’re typically used as an indicator of how inclusive a university is of low-income individuals.

The report found that Cal Poly has the lowest share of Pell Grant recipients in the entire CSU system.

Just 16% of Cal Poly’s undergraduate population during the 2020-21 year received a Pell Grant, according to the report.

The next lowest Pell Grant recipient rate was 27% at the Maritime Academy, the report showed.

Meanwhile, other CSUs had much higher rates of undergraduate Pell Grant recipients: Cal Poly Humboldt had 51% of its students during the 2020-21 academic year receive a Pell Grant, while the figure was 50% at CSU Channel Islands, 48% at Cal Poly Pomona, 45% at CSU Monterey and 37% at San Jose State, the report shows.

Coupled with Cal Poly’s costly tuition and fees, many low-income students appear to be excluded from enrolling at the Central Coast university, a representative of the Cal State Student Association told The Tribune.

“SLO is one of the campuses that in some ways practices exclusivity in the way that you see private schools practice it — they have a very low acceptance rate,” said Miya Smith Haley, public relations and communications director for the Cal State Student Association. “The fact that it is definitely in an area that is more costly than other places like Dominguez Hills plays into it because students that are not from that area or don’t have familial support in that area will need to move there and then find lodging, housing and all of these things that are usually very detrimental to a student in regards to total cost of attendance.”

In an emailed statement, Cal Poly spokesperson Matt Lazier said part of the issue is that Cal Poly is a “destination campus” that draws its enrollment from outside of the local area.

“Lower-income students traditionally have less mobility than students with higher income,” Lazier wrote. “This can make attending a destination campus like ours a more difficult choice for many lower-income students — thus making those students more difficult for Cal Poly to attract.”

Lazier said the university acknowledges that it has traditionally had lower numbers of Pell Grant students and that it “is working to address this issue and making progress.”

That includes providing housing grants and bolstering financial aid by investing in the programs that help make the university more financially achievable for low-income students, he said.

According to Lazier, Cal Poly’s rate of Pell Grant students went from 16% during the 2020-21 academic year to 19% during the 2022-23 academic year.

That remains far below the CSU average of just over 50%, according to the university system’s financial aid report for the 2021-22 school year.

Lazier declined a Tribune request to speak with other university officials on the subject.

Cal Poly Pell Grant students have highest graduation rate in CSU

Despite the low numbers, the report also noted Cal Poly has the highest graduation rate among its Pell Grant students.

As of the 2020-21 academic year, Pell Grant recipients had an 81% graduation rate at the San Luis Obispo university, according to the report.

The next highest were San Diego State University and CSU Long Beach, both at 74%, according to the report.

Comparatively, other universities in the CSU system had Pell Grant graduation rates of around 45% to 69%, the report showed.

Similar to other universities, however, non-Pell Grant recipients were slightly more likely to graduate at Cal Poly.

The report showed a graduation rate of 86% for non-Pell Grant recipients for the 2020-21 academic year at Cal Poly — the highest across the system.

Cal Poly’s high graduation rate could be attributed in part to its selectivity, the report said.

“They are very exclusive and very particular about whom they admit into their university, which also means that there’s going to be many students that are most likely to graduate,” Haley said. “Because they are extremely expensive ... they have the resources to pour into the student.”

Cal Poly tuition, fees highest in CSU

At about $10,200, Cal Poly’s tuition and fees were the highest in the CSU system during the 2020-21 academic year, according to the report.

That has since increased to between $11,490 and $12,204 for undergraduate California residents during the 2023-24 academic year, according to Cal Poly’s financial aid office.

Meanwhile, out-of-state students paid between $31,674 and $32,388, which includes an $8,304 “opportunity fee” to fund the Cal Poly Scholars program that aims to increase diversity at the university.

The Cal Poly Scholars program was created by Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong in 2012 and is funded through student fees. It focuses on ensuring low-income students who are accepted to Cal Poly have the financial means to enroll.

Cal Poly’s high cost means low-income students have to, on average, work 27 hours per week to cover net costs of attending the university, the report said.

Low-income students at other universities across the state have to work more hours, according to the report. For example, at CSU San Marcos, students have to work 33 hours per week; 31 hours per week at at CSU Monterey Bay and 28 hours at Sacramento State, the report shows.