Cal Poly Maritime Academy

Public · Moderately Selective · CA

Photo: Alfred Twu (CC0)

School data & stats

TypePublic

LocationCA · West

SettingUrban

Undergrads804

Student:faculty11:1

Outcomes

4-yr grad rate39.8%

6-yr grad rate59.7%

Drop-out rate22.5%

Study abroad—

Cost

In-state tuition$10k

Out-of-state tuition$23k

Application fee—

Community

Racial diversity51.9%

Gender diversity18%

International0.4%

Identity—

Overview

California's state maritime academy, on San Pablo Bay in Vallejo, trains students for US Coast Guard merchant-marine officer licenses alongside general degrees in maritime-adjacent business and engineering fields. It recently integrated into the Cal Poly system, adding Cal Poly's broader academic resources to a campus that has operated as a distinct, uniformed institution for decades.

Academics

License-track students, in majors such as marine engineering technology and marine transportation, complete required sea terms aboard a training ship, logging real sailing time as part of their degree — a structure closer to a service-academy curriculum than a typical university major. Non-license programs, including global logistics and business administration, share the maritime-industry focus without the licensure requirement or sea-term obligation.

Campus & student life

Cadets in the licensure track live under a structured, uniformed corps system with daily formations and a rank hierarchy, which shapes campus culture more than a typical residential college experience; non-license students share the campus without those requirements. The Vallejo waterfront setting on San Pablo Bay is central to the school's identity.

Getting in

Applicants to license-track majors go through additional physical and background requirements tied to eventual Coast Guard credentialing, on top of standard academic admission.

After graduation

Graduates of the licensure programs move directly into merchant-marine officer positions, and strong placement into that pipeline is a central selling point — the degree functions as close to job-guaranteed for students who complete the sea terms and licensing exams.

Worth knowing

This is a fundamentally different experience from a standard four-year college for students in the uniformed license track — daily structure, a training-ship deployment, and a narrow career pipeline — so it suits students already committed to a maritime or engineering-officer career rather than those still exploring options.

csum.edu ↗

Admissions

Acceptance rate95%

Enrolled mid-50%—

Test policynot used

Rec letters—

Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)

Regular decisionNov 30

Applying