2023 Best Legal Professions Schools in California
Finding the Best Legal Professions School for You
In 2020-2021, 6,896 degrees and certificates were awarded to legal professions students who went to a California college or university. This makes it the #20 most popular major in the state.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
The Best Legal Professions Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 22 schools in California to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Legal Professions Schools in California
The following schools top our list of the Best Legal Professions Colleges.
Top 10 Best Legal Professions Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Stanford University the best school in California for legal professions students. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.
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The excellent programs at University of California - Berkeley helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal professions schools in California. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a fairly large student population.
On average, legal professions graduates from UC Berkeley take out $15,000 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $278.
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Out of the 22 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Cerritos College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Cerritos College is a large public school located in the large suburb of Norwalk.
Legal Professions majors at Cerritos College take out an average of $16,650 in student loans while working on their egree.
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The excellent programs at University of California - Los Angeles helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal professions schools in California. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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Out of the 22 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Hastings College of Law landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the city of San Francisco, UC Hastings is a public college with a small student population.
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University of Southern California landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal professions programs. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.
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Santa Clara University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Professions Schools in California ranking. SCU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Santa Clara.
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With a ranking of #8, Southwestern Law School did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal professions students. Southwestern Law School is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.
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University of California - Irvine came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Professions Schools in California ranking. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a very large student population.
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University of California - Davis ranked #10 on this year’s Best Legal Professions Schools in California list. Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public school with a very large student population.
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Request InformationBest Legal Professions Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Legal Professions Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Washington | 892 |
| Oregon | 506 |
| Hawaii | 128 |
| Nevada | 265 |
| Alaska | 32 |
More Legal Professions Rankings in California
Rankings in Majors Related to Legal Professions
Legal Professions Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Law | 36,216 |
| Legal Support Services | 11,545 |
| Legal Research | 6,874 |
| Non-Professional General Legal Studies | 4,407 |
| Legal Professions (Other) | 2,013 |
Majors Similar to Legal Professions
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting | 142,610 |
| Public Administration & Social Service | 98,583 |
| Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies | 73,813 |
| Military Technologies & Applied Sciences | 4,477 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 22 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 The wub.
More about our data sources and methodologies.