California State University, Bakersfield is a 4-year regional university located in California's southern San Joaquin Valley. CSU Bakersfield is one of 23 campuses in the CSU system and currently has an enrollment of 11,000 students. The University services a socially and ethnically diverse population of 800,000 in an area of 10,000 square miles. Bakersfield has a much lower cost of living than coastal California. Los Angeles, the Pacific Ocean, Mojave Desert, and Sierra Nevada Mountains are all within a two-hour drive from campus.