Foothill College
Rolling
Acceptance rate
$10,224
Tuition/yr
13,000
Enrollment
About Foothill College
Community college in Los Altos Hills, CA (Silicon Valley). Strong tech and transfer programs.
Foothill College is a public two-year community college founded in 1957, located on a 122-acre campus in Los Altos Hills, California, within Santa Clara County. It serves more than 14,000 students per quarter across its Los Altos Hills and Sunnyvale Center campuses and online, offering 214 degrees and certificates for 2025–2026. The college is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC).
The college is best known as a transfer institution, consistently ranked among the top California community colleges for transfers to the University of California system. In 2023–24, Foothill and its sister college De Anza collectively transferred nearly 1,200 students to UC campuses, with UC San Diego, UCLA, and UC Berkeley among the top destinations. Alongside transfer-focused associate degrees, Foothill offers career programs in health sciences, including two bachelor's degrees in Dental Hygiene and Respiratory Care, plus programs in Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Paramedicine, and Radiologic Technology.
Foothill sits in the geographic center of Silicon Valley, giving students direct access to internship and employment networks at major technology companies. The campus features small average class sizes of 24 students, an on-campus dental health clinic, and has been designated both a Hispanic Serving Institution and an Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution.
Campus & Location
CA
Suburban
Optional Practical Training (OPT)
All graduates from CRICOS-registered programs qualify for 12-month Optional Practical Training (OPT). STEM-designated programs (CS, Engineering, Data Science, Mathematics, Sciences) qualify for a 24-month STEM OPT extension — 36 months total of US work authorisation.
For Nepali students
- Foothill offers one of the most cost-effective legal pathways into a US bachelor's degree: international undergraduates pay approximately $284 per unit (2026–27 rate), putting total annual tuition near $10,200 for the required 12-unit minimum per quarter, significantly lower than four-year university costs in the US.
- The college's UC transfer track is a realistic route to UCLA, UC Berkeley, or UC San Diego for Nepali students who may not meet direct-admission thresholds; the TAG (Transfer Admission Guarantee) program with six UC campuses gives eligible students guaranteed admission before they even complete their associate degree.
- Second-year international students become eligible for institutional scholarships ranging from $500 to $4,000, and on-campus part-time work (up to 19 hours/week) is permitted on an F-1 visa, helping offset living costs in the Bay Area.
- Foothill's Silicon Valley location provides direct access to tech-industry internship networks, which is particularly valuable for Nepali students pursuing computing, engineering transfer pathways, or health sciences programs.
Admission requirements — Nepali equivalents
A rough translation of the published minimums for Nepali applicants:
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