2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in California
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best General Biology School for You
In 2020-2021, general biology students earned 14,026 degrees and certificates from a California school, making the subject the 7th in the state.
There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. 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.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value General Biology Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 55 schools in California 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.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Top 10 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 California. San Diego Mesa College is a large public school located in the city of San Diego.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at San Diego Mesa College are $1,144 per year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from San Diego Mesa College carry an average student debtload of $6,973.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Diego City College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in California list. San Diego City College is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Diego.
San Diego City College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,144 in in-state 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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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Reedley College. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in California list. Located in the town of Reedley, Reedley College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
Reedley College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,304 in in-state 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 California list. Located in the large city of San Diego, San Diego Miramar College is a public college with a large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at San Diego Miramar College are $1,144 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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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means California State University - Channel Islands is a great value for general biology students. CSUCI is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Camarillo.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSUCI are $6,817 per 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.
Full General Biology at California State University - Channel Islands Report
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San Jose State University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in California list. San Jose State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Jose.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at San Jose State are $7,852 per 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 California list.
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San Francisco State University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in California list. Located in the large city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public school with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SFSU are $7,304 a year. On average, biology graduates from SFSU take out $17,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
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With a ranking of #8, California State University - East Bay did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general biology students. Located in the large suburb of Hayward, Cal State East Bay is a public college with a large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal State East Bay are $6,995 per 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 did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general biology students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the large city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Sac State undergraduate students pay an average of $7,392 in in-state tuition and fees each 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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California State University - Stanislaus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general biology students. It came in at #10 on the list. Stan State is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Turlock.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Stan State are $7,644 per year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from Stan State carry an average student debtload of $16,000.
Request InformationBest Value General Biology Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Value General Biology Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Washington | 1,675 |
| Oregon | 969 |
| Nevada | 561 |
| Hawaii | 253 |
| Alaska | 98 |
More General Biology Rankings in California
General Biology Related Majors for Biology
General Biology is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.
Majors Similar to Biology
| 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 25 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.
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