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Best Area Studies Master's Degree Schools in California

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2023 Best Area Studies Master's Degree Schools in California

11 Colleges
$46,380 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Area Studies Master's Degree School for You

Area Studies is the #98 most popular major in California with 879 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Area Studies Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 11 schools in California to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best for area studies majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 10 Best Area Studies Master's Degree Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for area studies students who want to pursue a master’s degree in California. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford.

Read full report on Area Studies at Stanford University

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of California - Berkeley is a great place for area studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of California - Berkeley

#3

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA

Out of the 11 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of San Francisco landed the # 3 spot on the list. USFCA is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of San Francisco.

Read More…

#4

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

The excellent master’s degree programs at San Diego State University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best area studies schools in California. SDSU is a fairly large public school located in the city of San Diego.

Full Area Studies at San Diego State University Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Davis. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of California - Davis

With a ranking of #6, University of California - San Diego did quite well on this year’s best schools for area studies students working on their master’s degree. UCSD is a fairly large public school located in the city of La Jolla.

Full Area Studies at University of California - San Diego Report

University of California - Los Angeles ranked #7 on this year’s Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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California State University - Long Beach did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for area studies students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Area Studies at California State University - Long Beach

With a ranking of #9, University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well on this year’s best schools for area studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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California State University - Fullerton landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree area studies programs. Located in the large suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public college with a very large student population.

Full Area Studies at California State University - Fullerton Report

Best Area Studies Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Area Studies Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 236
Oregon 56
Nevada 4
Hawaii 57
Alaska 1

One of 2 majors within the area of study, area studies has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Area Studies

Related Major Annual Graduates
Ethnic Studies 9,231
Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies (Other) 46

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 11 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 Karl Udo Gerth.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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