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Home > Online Colleges > Military-Friendly > California > El Centro
Key takeaway: 10 accredited institutions within 100 miles of El Centro offer fully online programs and report both credit for military training and a dedicated point of contact for veterans, servicemembers, and their families (IPEDS IC 2024); 5 report all four services the federal survey tracks. The nearest installation recorded by the Census Bureau is Naval Air Facility el Centro, about 7 miles away, and 8 installations sit within 100 miles (1 Navy, 1 Marine Corps, 6 Other). None of the 10 schools has a campus within 30 miles; the closest is Arizona Western College in Yuma, AZ, about 62 miles away. The highest-ranked by BOC Score is San Diego State University. El Centro has a population of about 44,186 and a median household income of $56,093; 15.8 percent of adults hold a bachelor’s degree or higher (Census ACS 5-year estimates).
Schools based in California that report credit for military training and a dedicated military contact, ordered by distance from El Centro city center, with BOC Score on each card. The tags on each card are the school’s own IPEDS answers for the four military services. The distance table further down covers the nearest qualifying schools regardless of state line.
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from El Centro. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
| School | Location | Credit for military training | Dedicated military contact | DoD MOU member | Student veteran org | BOC Score | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego State University | San Diego, CA | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 83.7 | 88 mi |
| California State University-San Marcos | San Marcos, CA | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 75.5 | 96 mi |
| ATA College | El Cajon, CA | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | 73.3 | 83 mi |
| Point Loma Nazarene University | San Diego, CA | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 68.1 | 98 mi |
| Alliant International University-San Diego | San Diego, CA | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | 65.3 | 90 mi |
| San Diego Miramar College | San Diego, CA | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | 64.2 | 91 mi |
| Grossmont College | El Cajon, CA | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | 58.6 | 84 mi |
| San Diego Mesa College | San Diego, CA | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | 57.2 | 94 mi |
| Palomar College | San Marcos, CA | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 55.8 | 98 mi |
| Arizona Western College | Yuma, AZ | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 51.2 | 62 mi |
California has 146 military-friendly online colleges by this definition; the California page lists them all.
| Installation (as recorded by the Census Bureau) | Branch (from the name) | Distance from El Centro |
|---|---|---|
| Naval Air Facility el Centro | Navy | 7 mi |
| Shade Tree Range | Other | 16 mi |
| Holtville Carrier Landing Site | Other | 24 mi |
| Chocolate Mountains Aerial Gunnery Range | Other | 39 mi |
| Nb Coronado Camp Michael Monsoor | Other | 52 mi |
| Nb Coronado Camp Morena | Other | 56 mi |
| Marine Corps Air Station Yuma | Marine Corps | 56 mi |
| Yuma Proving Ground | Other | 67 mi |
Median wages for occupations that veterans commonly move into after an online degree (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), shown for the El Centro, CA metro area where BLS publishes it.
| Occupation | Median annual wage | Scope | Cost-of-living adjusted (US=100) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information Security Analysts | $138,570 | CA statewide | $145,557 |
| Logisticians | $65,690 | El Centro, CA metro | $69,002 |
| Emergency Management Directors | $129,910 | CA statewide | $136,460 |
| Police and Sheriff’s Patrol Officers | $76,230 | El Centro, CA metro | $80,074 |
| Medical and Health Services Managers | $132,620 | El Centro, CA metro | $139,307 |
| Project Management Specialists | $105,860 | El Centro, CA metro | $111,197 |
| Network and Computer Systems Administrators | $88,580 | El Centro, CA metro | $93,046 |
| Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $95,330 | El Centro, CA metro | $100,137 |
BLS publishes wages for metro areas and states, not individual cities; rows marked with the metro name are metro medians, the rest are statewide.
None of the 10 schools in the table has a campus within 30 miles of El Centro; the nearest is Arizona Western College at 62 miles.
Benefit eligibility is determined by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and your service’s education office. Nothing on this page guarantees education benefits, credit transfer, admission, or a particular cost. Confirm every detail with the school’s military or veteran services office before you enroll.
Sources: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey (IC 2024): veteran and military services indicators (VET2 through VET5), distance-education program flag (DISTPGS); BOC Score from College Scorecard and IPEDS outcome data; U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 Military Installations layer (installation names as recorded there); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities; Census ACS 5-year estimates. Directory counts as of the September 2026 refresh.
