Cabrillo College is the public community college serving Santa Cruz County, and its main campus sits on Soquel Drive in Aptos, just off Highway 1. A lot of my Aptos clients have a connection to it, whether they took a class there, sent a kid there before UC Santa Cruz, or just drive past it every day, so I wanted to put together an accurate, current overview of what the college offers and how it fits into life in this part of the county.
Key Takeaways
Summary: Cabrillo College is Santa Cruz County’s public community college, founded in 1959 with its main campus in Aptos and a second center in Watsonville. It offers low-cost transfer pathways to UC and CSU campuses, career certificates, and associate degrees, and it is building 647 beds of student housing on the Aptos campus for fall 2027, which matters to anyone who owns or is buying a home nearby.
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A Brief History
Cabrillo College held its first classes on September 1, 1959, in condemned buildings on an unused corner of the Watsonville High School campus, with a little over 800 freshmen. The college moved to its permanent home in Aptos once that campus was built in the early 1960s. It was named after the explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, and its founding president, Dr. Robert Swenson, led the college for roughly its first two decades and set the student-centered tone it’s still known for. Enrollment was about 9,700 students in fall 2022, and it has been climbing back since the pandemic years.
The Name Debate
In 2023 the college formally studied whether to change its name, since Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo’s expeditions are tied to the harm Spanish colonization brought to Native peoples. After months of public forums and a shortlist of possible new names, the governing board voted 6 to 1 on September 11, 2023, to put off any renaming until at least 2028. Instead, the board shifted its focus to programs supporting Indigenous and Native students, including plans for an endowed Indigenous studies professorship. You can read Lookout Santa Cruz’s coverage of the vote for more background.
Mission and Core Values
Cabrillo College is dedicated to helping its students succeed both personally and professionally by building four core competencies, which the college calls the “Core 4.”
- Communication: This includes reading, writing, listening, speaking, and conversing.
- Critical Thinking and Information Competency: Skills like analysis, computation, research, and problem-solving are prioritized.
- Global Awareness: The college encourages an understanding and appreciation of scientific processes, global systems, and civics, as well as artistic variety.
- Personal Responsibility and Professional Development: Self-management and self-awareness, social and physical wellness, and workplace soft skills are also part of the curriculum.
Cabrillo College Student Union
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Campus and Facilities
The main campus is at 6500 Soquel Drive in Aptos, and the Watsonville Center is at 318 Union Street in downtown Watsonville. Over the years the college has invested in several major building projects, including the Barbara Samper Student Activities Center, the Arts Education Complex, and a Health & Wellness Center on the Aptos campus.
The main quad in Aptos features a bust honoring Martin Luther King Jr., and in 2013 the college opened the Baskin Engineering, Physics and Computing Center as a hub for STEM classes. The Watsonville Center is home to the Solari Green Technology Center, which was Cabrillo’s first LEED Platinum building and offers classes in renewable and recycled building materials, solar technology, and construction management.
New Student Housing on the Aptos Campus
The biggest change coming to the campus is housing. Cabrillo and UC Santa Cruz are building a joint 647-bed student housing project on the Aptos campus, with about 60% of the beds set aside for Cabrillo students and 40% for UCSC students, plus 20 family units for Cabrillo student parents. Rents are expected to come in at roughly two-thirds of local market rates or less. The leasing office opened in September 2026, and move-in is expected in fall 2027, according to The Pajaronian. In a county where student renters compete with families for the same small supply of apartments and granny units, that’s a meaningful addition.
Academics and Transfer Options
Cabrillo College is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges and offers hundreds of courses that count toward four-year degrees in a wide range of majors. Many Cabrillo students transfer to nearby universities, including the University of California, Santa Cruz, San José State University, and California State University, Monterey Bay. If you’re curious about UCSC itself, my post on the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum & Botanic Garden is a good place to start.
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The college also offers career and technical programs, including allied health and nursing, that lead to skills certificates, certificates of achievement, and associate degrees, many of them tied to employers across the Monterey Bay and the greater Bay Area. Cabrillo also offers basic skills courses and classes for business, professional, and personal development. You’ll find the full catalog on the Cabrillo College website.
Financial Aid and Tuition
Cabrillo is one of the most affordable ways to start a college education in California. Residents pay the statewide community college enrollment fee of $46 per unit, so a full-time load of 12 units runs about $552 a semester before small campus fees for health services, transportation, and student activities. Nonresident and international students pay additional per-unit tuition. The California College Promise Grant waives the enrollment fee entirely for eligible California residents, and the college also offers Pell Grants, Cal Grants, and other aid. The current fee schedule is on Cabrillo’s fees, payments, and refunds page.
Campus Life and Student Resources
Cabrillo provides a busy campus life and plenty of support for students, including academic and career counseling, health services, tutoring, and programs like EOPS for low-income students, disability support services, and services for veterans. The campus is also a community gathering place. The Aptos Farmers Market sets up in the Cabrillo College parking lot every Saturday morning, and the internationally known Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music got its start at the college back in 1963.
Cabrillo College in Aptos
Athletics
Cabrillo’s teams are the Seahawks, their mascot is Sammy the Seahawk, and the school colors are sky blue, white, and black. The athletics department fields men’s and women’s teams in a range of sports, and you can follow schedules and results on the Cabrillo Seahawks athletics site.
Notable Alumni
Cabrillo College has an impressive list of alumni who’ve made their mark in sports, entertainment, and public life. They include actors Camryn Manheim and Denise Crosby, former NFL linebacker Brendan Ayanbadejo, former Major League pitcher Mark Eichhorn, and former California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson.
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What Cabrillo Means for Aptos Homeowners and Buyers
From a real estate point of view, Cabrillo is part of what makes Aptos work as a place to live. Buyers moving over the hill from Silicon Valley often like having a college campus close by for classes, events, and the Saturday farmers market, and the neighborhoods around it, like Seacliff, are close to both the campus and Seacliff State Beach. Expect more traffic on Soquel Drive and the nearby Highway 1 on-ramps when the semester is in session, and keep an eye on how the new student housing changes the local rental market once it opens. If you’re weighing a move here, my guides to living in Aptos and moving from the Bay Area to Santa Cruz cover the bigger picture, and my Aptos home prices page shows where the market is right now. For a weekend outing nearby, The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park is just a few minutes from campus.
Conclusion
Cabrillo College has been a cornerstone of higher education in Santa Cruz County for more than 65 years, giving students an affordable start, a real path to UC and CSU campuses, and job-ready training close to home. Its focus on communication, critical thinking, global awareness, and personal responsibility, along with the new housing coming to the Aptos campus, keeps it at the center of community life here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Cabrillo College located?
The main campus is at 6500 Soquel Drive in Aptos, California, just off Highway 1. The college also runs the Watsonville Center at 318 Union Street in downtown Watsonville.
How much does Cabrillo College cost?
California residents pay $46 per unit, so a 12-unit semester is about $552 in enrollment fees plus small campus fees. Eligible residents can have the enrollment fee waived through the California College Promise Grant, while nonresident students pay additional tuition.
Is Cabrillo College changing its name?
Not right now. In September 2023 the governing board voted 6 to 1 to delay any renaming until at least 2028 and to focus on programs supporting Indigenous and Native students in the meantime.
Does Cabrillo College have student housing?
It will soon. A joint Cabrillo and UC Santa Cruz project is adding 647 beds on the Aptos campus, with most reserved for Cabrillo students, and move-in is expected in fall 2027.
Can I transfer from Cabrillo College to UC Santa Cruz?
Yes. UC Santa Cruz, San José State, and Cal State Monterey Bay are among the most common transfer destinations for Cabrillo students, and the college’s counselors help students plan transfer coursework and guarantee programs.
What neighborhoods are near Cabrillo College?
The campus sits between Soquel and Aptos Village, close to the Seacliff area and Seacliff State Beach. Many homes within a few minutes of campus are in the Aptos and Seacliff neighborhoods, which are popular with buyers relocating from Silicon Valley.
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