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Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California

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2023 Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California

159 Colleges
$30,148 Avg Salary
$16,587 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Philosophy & Religious Studies School for You

Philosophy & Religious Studies is the #27 most popular major in California with 2,393 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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 Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California ranking. Our analysis looked at 159 schools in California to see which programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Philosophy & Religious Studies program at each school on the list.

Check out the philosophy and religious studies programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in California.

Our 2023 rankings named University of California - Los Angeles the most popular school in California for philosophy and religious studies students. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a very large student population.

After completing their degree, philosophy and religious studies graduates from UCLA carry an average student debt load of $15,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $232, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Philosophy & Religious Studies at University of California - Los Angeles Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Santa Barbara. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that philosophy and religious studies majors at UCSB take out is $15,198.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that philosophy and religious studies majors at UC Berkeley take out is $15,000.

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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Southern California is a great place for philosophy and religious studies students. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

While working on their degree, philosophy and religious studies majors at USC accumulate an average of around $13,000 in student debt.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at University of Southern California

#5

Biola University

La Mirada, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Biola University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Biola is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of La Mirada.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at Biola University

With a ranking of #6, University of California - Riverside did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for philosophy and religious studies students. Located in the large city of Riverside, UCR is a public college with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that philosophy and religious studies majors at UCR take out is $20,135.

Full Philosophy & Religious Studies at University of California - Riverside Report

University of California - Irvine landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular philosophy and religious studies programs. Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, philosophy and religious studies majors at UC Irvine accumulate an average of around $19,897 in student debt.

Full Philosophy & Religious Studies at University of California - Irvine Report

With a ranking of #8, California State University - Long Beach did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for philosophy and religious studies students. Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that philosophy and religious studies majors at CSULB take out is $18,500.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at California State University - Long Beach

University of California - Davis landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular philosophy and religious studies programs. Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public school with a very large student population.

After completing their degree, philosophy and religious studies graduates from UC Davis carry an average student debt load of $13,394.

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With a ranking of #9, University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for philosophy and religious studies students. UC Santa Cruz is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Santa Cruz.

After completing their degree, philosophy and religious studies graduates from UC Santa Cruz carry an average student debt load of $17,500.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at University of California - Santa Cruz

#11

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA

San Francisco State University ranked #11 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. SFSU is a very large public school located in the city of San Francisco.

While working on their degree, philosophy and religious studies majors at SFSU accumulate an average of around $16,500 in student debt.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at San Francisco State University

University of California - San Diego ranked #12 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. UCSD is a fairly large public school located in the city of La Jolla.

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#13

Santa Clara University

Santa Clara, CA

Santa Clara University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular philosophy and religious studies programs. SCU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Santa Clara.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at Santa Clara University

California State University - Fullerton landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular philosophy and religious studies programs. Located in the suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Philosophy & Religious Studies majors at Cal State Fullerton take out an average of $14,203 in student loans while working on their egree.

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#15

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Stanford University ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.

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California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo ranked #16 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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#17

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

San Diego State University landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular philosophy and religious studies programs. SDSU is a very large public school located in the large city of San Diego.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at San Diego State University

California State University - Northridge landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular philosophy and religious studies programs. CSUN is a fairly large public school located in the city of Northridge.

The average amount in student loans that philosophy and religious studies majors at CSUN take out is $15,325.

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California State University - Sacramento ranked #19 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Sac State is a very large public school located in the large city of Sacramento.

On average, philosophy and religious studies graduates from Sac State take out $15,382 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Philosophy & Religious Studies at California State University - Sacramento Report

California Baptist University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California ranking. Located in the city of Riverside, Cal Baptist is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Philosophy & Religious Studies majors at Cal Baptist take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Philosophy & Religious Studies at California Baptist University

Claremont School of Theology came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California ranking. Located in the suburb of Claremont, Claremont School of Theology is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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Vanguard University of Southern California did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for philosophy and religious studies students. It came in at #22 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Costa Mesa, Vanguard is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Philosophy & Religious Studies at Vanguard University of Southern California Report

#23

University of San Diego

San Diego, CA

University of San Diego ranked #23 on this year’s Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California list. Located in the large city of San Diego, USD is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

Full Philosophy & Religious Studies at University of San Diego Report

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional popular schools for Philosophy & Religious Studies students in the state of California that almost earned our Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in California award.

Rank College Location
24 Pepperdine University Malibu, CA
24 San Jose State University San Jose, CA
24 California State Polytechnic University - Pomona Pomona, CA
27 California State University - Chico Chico, CA
28 University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA
28 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
30 Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA
30 Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA

Best Philosophy & Religious Studies Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Most Popular Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 331
Oregon 136
Hawaii 47
Nevada 57
Alaska 4

Philosophy & Religious Studies Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Philosophy 10,054
Religious Studies 9,470
Other Philosophy & Religious Studies 285
General Philosophy & Religious Studies 184

Related Major Annual Graduates
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities 556,813
Visual & Performing Arts 149,215
English Language & Literature 54,635
Foreign Languages & Linguistics 33,333
Theology & Religious Vocations 27,459

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 26 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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