Transferring from community college to university is a key lever for increasing income equality. Those with bachelor's degrees earn significantly higher lifetime incomes, and the sheer availability of jobs for those with only a high school diploma is declining. Broadly, research documents location as a salient factor in students' college-going decisions, with a positive association between the number of college options in close proximity to a student's home and the likelihood of college attendance. Research suggests distance is a key factor in college-going decisions, most notably for students from underrepresented groups, such as Latine students and students from lower-income backgrounds. While California is home to 116 community colleges, the concentration of universities in any given region has yet to be mapped to determine where areas with limited higher education options (known as university deserts) exist and whether these university deserts are more prevalent in areas with higher concentrations of underrepresented or low-income students. This study sought to investigate how proximity to a public university affected transfer outcomes for California community college students. To do so, the authors mapped where university deserts exist and whether students served by colleges in these areas differed in their demographic makeup and transfer outcomes.