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Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master's Degree Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master's Degree Schools in California

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

8 Colleges
$10,539 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$46,931 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Master's Degree School for You

Liberal Arts General Studies is one of the most popular subjects to study in California. With 52,773 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 2nd out of all the majors we track in the state.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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 Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 8 schools in California to see which ones offered the best value master's degree programs for liberal arts students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for liberal arts majors pursuing a master's degree.

Best California Schools for Affordable Quality for a Master's in Liberal Arts General Studies

#1

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA

Our analysis found San Francisco State University to be the best value school for liberal arts general studies students who want to pursue a master’s degree in California. SFSU is a very large public school located in the city of San Francisco.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at SFSU are $8,738 a year.

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Out of the 8 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Northridge landed the # 2 spot on the list. CSUN is a very large public school located in the city of Northridge.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at CSUN are $8,477 a year.

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#3

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend San Diego State University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California list. SDSU is a very large public school located in the large city of San Diego.

SDSU graduate students pay an average of $9,570 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Dominguez Hills. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the small city of Carson, CSUDH is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at CSUDH are $8,494 a year.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at California State University - Dominguez Hills

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Sacramento. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Sac State is a very large public school located in the city of Sacramento.

Sac State graduate students pay an average of $8,826 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at California State University - Sacramento

#6

Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA

Mount Saint Mary’s University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. MSMU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at MSMU are $13,099 a year.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Mount Saint Mary’s University

Dominican University of California landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree liberal arts general studies programs. DUofC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of San Rafael.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at DUofC are $16,569 per year.

Full Liberal Arts General Studies at Dominican University of California Report

Saint Mary’s College of California landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree liberal arts general studies programs. Located in the suburb of Moraga, SMC is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at SMC are $33,357 a year.

In addition to its great value ranking, SMC is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Liberal Arts General Studies Master’s Degree Schools in California list.

Full Liberal Arts General Studies at Saint Mary’s College of California Report

Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 17,408
Oregon 8,599
Nevada 1,679
Hawaii 2,024
Alaska 417

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 8 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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