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Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

54 Colleges
$8,329 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$35,856 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Communication & Journalism School for You

Communication & Journalism is the #12 most popular major in California with 17,589 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

The Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 54 schools in California to see which ones offered the best value programs for communication and journalism students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

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.

2023 Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for communication and journalism majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Communication & Journalism Schools

#1

San Diego Mesa College

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

Our analysis found San Diego Mesa College to be the best value school for communication and journalism students who want to pursue a degree in California. 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. Communication & Journalism majors at San Diego Mesa College take out an average of $5,750 in student loans while working on their egree.

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$6,817 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Channel Islands. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California list. 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. After completing their degree, communication and journalism graduates from CSUCI carry an average student debtload of $14,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $203.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at California State University - Channel Islands

Out of the 54 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Jose State University landed the # 3 spot on the list. San Jose State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Jose.

San Jose State undergraduate students pay an average of $7,852 in in-state 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 Communication & Journalism Schools in California list.

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$10,195 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California list. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public school located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo undergraduate students pay an average of $10,195 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, communication and journalism graduates from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo carry an average student debtload of $16,719. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $310.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also is in the top 5% of our Best Communication & Journalism Schools in California ranking.

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#5

San Francisco State University

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

Out of the 54 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Francisco State University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the large city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SFSU are $7,304 a year. While working on their degree, communication and journalism majors at SFSU accumulate an average of around $16,122 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $167, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Communication & Journalism at San Francisco State University Report

$7,392 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - Sacramento came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California ranking. Located in the large city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public college with a very large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Sac State are $7,392 per year. The average amount in student loans that communication and journalism majors at Sac State take out is $17,035. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $136, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Communication & Journalism at California State University - Sacramento Report

$6,846 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - Long Beach ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California list. CSULB is a very large public school located in the large city of Long Beach.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CSULB are $6,846 a year. The average amount in student loans that communication and journalism majors at CSULB take out is $14,434.

Full Communication & Journalism at California State University - Long Beach Report

$6,976 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #8, California State University - Fullerton did quite well on this year’s best value schools for communication and journalism students. Cal State Fullerton is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Fullerton.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal State Fullerton are $6,976 per year. After completing their degree, communication and journalism graduates from Cal State Fullerton carry an average student debtload of $15,001. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $167, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Communication & Journalism at California State University - Fullerton Report

#9

Sonoma State University

Rohnert Park, CA
$7,988 Average Tuition & Fees

Sonoma State University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communication & Journalism Schools in California ranking. SSU is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Rohnert Park.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SSU are $7,988 a year. Communication & Journalism majors at SSU take out an average of $19,000 in student loans while working on their egree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $349.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at Sonoma State University

$7,727 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - San Marcos landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value communication and journalism programs. Located in the large suburb of San Marcos, CSUSM is a public college with a large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSUSM are $7,727 per year. Communication & Journalism majors at CSUSM take out an average of $16,710 in student loans while working on their egree.

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Best Value Communication & Journalism Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Communication & Journalism Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 2,086
Oregon 1,375
Hawaii 292
Nevada 523
Alaska 30

Communication & Journalism Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Communication & Media Studies 66,787
Public Relations & Advertising 21,099
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 17,669
Journalism 13,552
Communication & Journalism (Other) 1,128
Publishing 336

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 327,871
Social Sciences 205,984
Psychology 195,678
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Josh Hallett.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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