OCC’s young, diverse on rise

Michael Miller

Orange Coast College’s student population has grown younger and more

diverse over the last decade, according to a report issued Tuesday by

the college’s Admissions and Records Office.

Since the spring of 1996, the number of students under 21 has

increased by 39%. In addition, 70% of students now enrolled are under

25, as opposed to 57% in the spring of 1996, the report showed.

“That’s a very substantial increase in the younger-student

demographic,” said Nancy Kidder, administrative dean of admissions

and records. “We’ve been showing steady growth in our younger

students for a decade. With the growth patterns we see at the state’s

high schools, we expect that trend to persist at least until the year

2012.”

Kidder’s office surveyed the applications of all 21,015 students

currently enrolled for spring semester.

About the college’s growth trends, Kidder said, “We reflect our

community. They’re the children of the baby boomers, so they’re doing

the same thing as their parents.”

The report also showed OCC’s student body becoming more ethnically

diverse. Forty-seven percent of the student body is now Caucasian,

down from 54% nine years ago, while Latino enrollment has risen from

12% in 1996 to 18% this spring.

Kidder believes that the increased minority enrollment reflects

the college’s reputation as a transfer school. Forty-six percent of

students, she said, come from outside the K-12 schools that OCC’s

district, the Coast Community College District, covers.

“We attract beyond our district, mostly because of reputation and

size,” Kidder stated. “Students can go where they want, but they vote

with their feet.”

While Orange Coast College is known primarily as a transfer

school, the report also showed that 12% of students currently possess

an Associate of Arts degree or higher, as opposed to 8% in 1996. Half

of the students have prior college or university experience, while

41% are full-time students, taking 12 or more units.