Colleges / Design Institute of San Diego
College · Private for-profit · San Diego, CA · City
DIS

Design Institute of San Diego

San Diego, CA

Address8555 Commerce Ave, San Diego, CA 92121
Price calculatorRun your numbers →
Admit rate100%
6-yr median pay$47k
Net price / yr$44k
Undergrad size77
§ I · The real read

What it's actually like.

The bet

Net price of $44k/yr for a shot at a $47k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.

Getting in

Admit rate of 100% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid.

If you get in

77 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.

Where you live

City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.

§ II · Cost & aid

Sticker vs. real.

Sticker cost of attendance is $56k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $44k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.

Sticker · 4 yrs$224k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$176k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$48k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback3.8x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.

Where the money goes · annual sticker.

Tuition · in-state
$29.3k
Books & supplies
$1,062

How students pay for it.

Pell grants51%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans63%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$37k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $13k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes

Do people finish? Do they land?

1-yr retention54%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr80%
Majority finish.
6-yr median pay$47k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$47k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out0%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity

Setting, size, and who this school is.

Setting
City
Control
Private for-profit
Undergrad size
77
Location
San Diego, CA
Region
Far West (AK, CA, HI, NV, OR, WA)
Carnegie class
Associate's Colleges: Mixed Transfer/Career · High Nontraditional
Size & setting
Four-year · very small · primarily nonresidential
Undergrad program
Four-year · medium full-time, inclusive, higher transfer-in
Accreditor
Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission
§ · Who studies here

The student body at a glance.

  • White45%
  • Hispanic18%
  • Unknown16%
  • Asian8%
  • Black6%
  • International4%
  • Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander1%
  • Two or more races1%
Part-time23%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Median family income$29k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 1

What you can study.

Colleges / Design Institute of San Diego
College · Private for-profit · San Diego, CA · City
DIS

Design Institute of San Diego

San Diego, CA

Address8555 Commerce Ave, San Diego, CA 92121
Price calculatorRun your numbers →
Admit rate100%
6-yr median pay$47k
Net price / yr$44k
Undergrad size77
§ I · The real read

What it's actually like.

The bet

Net price of $44k/yr for a shot at a $47k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.

Getting in

Admit rate of 100% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid.

If you get in

77 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.

Where you live

City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.

§ II · Cost & aid

Sticker vs. real.

Sticker cost of attendance is $56k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $44k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.

Sticker · 4 yrs$224k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$176k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$48k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback3.8x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.

Where the money goes · annual sticker.

Tuition · in-state
$29.3k
Books & supplies
$1,062

How students pay for it.

Pell grants51%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans63%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$37k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $13k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes

Do people finish? Do they land?

1-yr retention54%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr80%
Majority finish.
6-yr median pay$47k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$47k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out0%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity

Setting, size, and who this school is.

Setting
City
Control
Private for-profit
Undergrad size
77
Location
San Diego, CA
Region
Far West (AK, CA, HI, NV, OR, WA)
Carnegie class
Associate's Colleges: Mixed Transfer/Career · High Nontraditional
Size & setting
Four-year · very small · primarily nonresidential
Undergrad program
Four-year · medium full-time, inclusive, higher transfer-in
Accreditor
Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission
§ · Who studies here

The student body at a glance.

  • White45%
  • Hispanic18%
  • Unknown16%
  • Asian8%
  • Black6%
  • International4%
  • Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander1%
  • Two or more races1%
Part-time23%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Median family income$29k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 1

What you can study.