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Best Value General Biology Schools in California

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2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in California

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

55 Colleges
$6,724 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$30,117 Avg Salary

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.

2023 Best Value General Biology Schools in California

Check out the biology programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best General Biology Schools

#1

San Diego Mesa College

San Diego, CA
$1,144 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named San Diego Mesa College the best value school in California for general biology students. San Diego Mesa College is a fairly 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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#2

San Diego City College

San Diego, CA
$1,144 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at San Diego City College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best general biology schools in California. San Diego City College is a fairly large public school located in the 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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#3

Reedley College

Reedley, CA
$1,304 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 55 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Reedley College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the town of Reedley, Reedley College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Reedley College are $1,304 per year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from Reedley College carry an average student debtload of $5,500.

Full General Biology at Reedley College Report

#4

San Diego Miramar College

San Diego, CA
$1,144 Average Tuition & Fees

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 school with a fairly large student population.

San Diego Miramar College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,144 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Biology majors at San Diego Miramar College take out an average of $5,606 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on General Biology at San Diego Miramar College

$6,817 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at California State University - Channel Islands helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best general biology schools in California. CSUCI is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Camarillo.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CSUCI are $6,817 a 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.

Read full report on General Biology at California State University - Channel Islands

With a ranking of #6, San Jose State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general biology students. San Jose State is a very large public school located in the city of San Jose.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at San Jose State are $7,852 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, San Jose State also is in the top 20% of our Best General Biology Schools in California ranking.

Full General Biology at San Jose State University Report

#7

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA
$7,304 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, San Francisco State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general biology students. Located in the city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SFSU are $7,304 per year. On average, biology graduates from SFSU take out $17,500 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on General Biology at San Francisco State University

$6,995 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - East Bay landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general biology programs. Located in the suburb of Hayward, Cal State East Bay is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Cal State East Bay are $6,995 a year. While working on their degree, biology majors at Cal State East Bay accumulate an average of around $21,500 in student debt.

Read full report on General Biology at California State University - East Bay

$7,392 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, California State University - Sacramento did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general biology students. Located in the large city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public school with a very large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Sac State are $7,392 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.

Read full report on General Biology at California State University - Sacramento

$7,644 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - Stanislaus ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value General Biology Schools in California list. Stan State is a large public school located in the small suburb of Turlock.

Stan State undergraduate students pay an average of $7,644 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, biology graduates from Stan State carry an average student debtload of $16,000.

Read full report on General Biology at California State University - Stanislaus

Best Value General Biology Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value General Biology Schools 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

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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