Home > Online Colleges > Military-Friendly > California > Santa Maria
Key takeaway: 10 accredited institutions within 100 miles of Santa Maria 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); 4 report all four services the federal survey tracks. The nearest installation recorded by the Census Bureau is Vandenberg AFB, about 17 miles away, and 8 installations sit within 100 miles (2 Army, 2 Navy, 1 Air Force, 3 Other). 3 of the 10 schools have a campus within 30 miles; the closest is Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, CA, about 1 miles from city center. The highest-ranked by BOC Score is California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo. Santa Maria has a population of about 109,880 and a median household income of $84,617; 15.1 percent of adults hold a bachelor’s degree or higher (Census ACS 5-year estimates).
Military-friendly online colleges near Santa Maria
Schools based in California that report credit for military training and a dedicated military contact, ordered by distance from Santa Maria 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.
How We Rank Schools
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:
BOCSCORE
- Graduation rate 30%
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
- Average net price (lower is better) 20%
- Retention rate 15%
- Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Santa Maria.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
26%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$42,786
Avg net price
$5,383/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Nearest qualifying schools within 100 miles (any state)
| School |
Location |
Credit for military training |
Dedicated military contact |
DoD MOU member |
Student veteran org |
BOC Score |
Distance |
| California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo |
San Luis Obispo, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
89.2 |
28 mi |
| California State University-Channel Islands |
Camarillo, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
75.7 |
96 mi |
| California State University-Bakersfield |
Bakersfield, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
74.3 |
81 mi |
| Santa Barbara City College |
Santa Barbara, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
56.7 |
56 mi |
| Allan Hancock College |
Santa Maria, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
55.3 |
1 mi |
| Coalinga College |
Coalinga, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
49.2 |
84 mi |
| Laurus College |
San Luis Obispo, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
48.6 |
26 mi |
| Taft College |
Taft, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
46.3 |
58 mi |
| Lionel University |
Carpinteria, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
43.4 |
66 mi |
| California Aeronautical University |
Bakersfield, CA |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
23.2 |
86 mi |
California has 146 military-friendly online colleges by this definition; the California page lists them all.
Military installations near Santa Maria
| Installation (as recorded by the Census Bureau) |
Branch (from the name) |
Distance from Santa Maria |
| Vandenberg AFB |
Air Force |
17 mi |
| Camp San Luis Obispo |
Army |
32 mi |
| Maneuver Training Center-Heavy Camp Roberts |
Other |
61 mi |
| Santa Cruz Island |
Other |
72 mi |
| Fort Hunter Liggett |
Army |
84 mi |
| Naval Base Ventura County (Construction Batallion Center Port Hueneme) |
Navy |
88 mi |
| Channel Islands Angs |
Other |
94 mi |
| Naval Base Ventura County (Naval Air Station Point Mugu) |
Navy |
95 mi |
Common post-service careers near Santa Maria
Median wages for occupations that veterans commonly move into after an online degree (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), shown for the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area where BLS publishes it.
| Occupation |
Median annual wage |
Scope |
Cost-of-living adjusted (US=100) |
| Information Security Analysts |
$130,770 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$120,193 |
| Logisticians |
$92,540 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$85,055 |
| Emergency Management Directors |
$129,910 |
CA statewide |
$119,403 |
| Police and Sheriff’s Patrol Officers |
$120,900 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$111,121 |
| Medical and Health Services Managers |
$130,290 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$119,752 |
| Project Management Specialists |
$106,250 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$97,656 |
| Network and Computer Systems Administrators |
$101,310 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$93,116 |
| Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers |
$115,880 |
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro |
$106,507 |
BLS publishes wages for metro areas and states, not individual cities; rows marked with the metro name are metro medians, the rest are statewide.
Campuses within 30 miles of Santa Maria
- Allan Hancock College (Santa Maria, CA), 1 mi, 3 of 4 services reported
- Laurus College (San Luis Obispo, CA), 26 mi, 2 of 4 services reported
- California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo (San Luis Obispo, CA), 28 mi, 4 of 4 services reported
Nearby cities
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.
