2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best General Biology School for You
With 107,165 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, general biology is the #5 most popular major in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 91 schools in the Far Western US Region to see which programs offered the best value experiences for biology students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Top 15% Best General Biology Schools
Our analysis found San Diego Mesa College to be the best value school for general biology students who want to pursue a degree in the Far Western US Region . San Diego Mesa College is a large public school located in the city of San Diego.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at San Diego Mesa College are $8,512 a year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from San Diego Mesa College carry an average student debtload of $6,973.
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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means San Diego City College is a great value for general biology students. San Diego City College is a large public school located in the large city of San Diego.
San Diego City College undergraduate students pay an average of $8,512 in tuition and fees each year. On average, biology graduates from San Diego City College take out $9,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
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The excellent programs at Reedley College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best general biology schools in the Far Western US Region . Located in the distant town of Reedley, Reedley College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
Reedley College undergraduate students pay an average of $8,504 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from Reedley College carry an average student debtload of $5,500.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Diego Miramar College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the city of San Diego, San Diego Miramar College is a public school with a large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at San Diego Miramar College are $8,512 per year. Biology majors at San Diego Miramar College take out an average of $5,606 in student loans while working on their egree.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend San Jose State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region list. San Jose State is a very large public school located in the city of San Jose.
San Jose State undergraduate students pay an average of $19,732 in tuition and fees each year.
San Jose State excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region list.
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California State University - Channel Islands landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general biology programs. CSUCI is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize suburb of Camarillo.
CSUCI undergraduate students pay an average of $18,697 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that biology majors at CSUCI take out is $19,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $374, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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San Francisco State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general biology students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the large city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public college with a fairly large student population.
SFSU undergraduate students pay an average of $19,184 in tuition and fees each year. On average, biology graduates from SFSU take out $17,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
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California State University - East Bay did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general biology students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Hayward, Cal State East Bay is a public school with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Cal State East Bay are $18,875 a year. While working on their degree, biology majors at Cal State East Bay accumulate an average of around $21,500 in student debt.
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California State University - Sacramento ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the large city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Sac State are $19,272 per year. While working on their degree, biology majors at Sac State accumulate an average of around $16,500 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $121, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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San Diego State University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at SDSU are $20,016 a year. The average amount in student loans that biology majors at SDSU take out is $19,999. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $330.
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California State University - Stanislaus ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Stan State is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Turlock.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Stan State are $19,524 a year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from Stan State carry an average student debtload of $16,000.
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California State University - Monterey Bay came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Located in the suburb of Seaside, CSUMB is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
CSUMB undergraduate students pay an average of $19,098 in tuition and fees each year. On average, biology graduates from CSUMB take out $16,969 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $339.
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With a ranking of #12, California State University - San Marcos did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general biology students. Located in the suburb of San Marcos, CSUSM is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSUSM are $19,607 per year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from CSUSM carry an average student debtload of $25,000.
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These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value General Biology Schools in the Far Western US Region award.
Rank | College | Location |
---|---|---|
14 | California State Polytechnic University - Pomona | Pomona, CA |
15 | California State University - Chico | Chico, CA |
16 | California State University - Fresno | Fresno, CA |
17 | California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo | San Luis Obispo, CA |
18 | California State University - Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA |
Best General Biology Colleges by State
Explore the best general biology schools for a specific state in the Far Western US region.
State | Degrees Awarded |
---|---|
California | 14,026 |
Washington | 1,675 |
Oregon | 969 |
Nevada | 561 |
Hawaii | 253 |
Alaska | 98 |
More General Biology Rankings in the Far Western US Region
General Biology Related Majors for Biology
General Biology is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Related Majors
Related Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology | 14,535 |
Neurobiology & Neurosciences | 11,615 |
Physiology & Pathology Sciences | 8,813 |
Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Biology | 7,247 |
Cell Biology & Anatomical Sciences | 6,206 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 26 schools only.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.