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Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California

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2023 Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California

20 Colleges
$37,767 Avg Salary
$17,012 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Child Development & Psychology School for You

With 4,035 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, child development and psychology is the #32 most popular major in California.

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 Child Development & Psychology Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 20 schools in California to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Child Development & Psychology Colleges.

Top 10 Best Child Development & Psychology Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for child development and psychology students who want to pursue a degree in California. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford.

Full Child Development & Psychology at Stanford University Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, The Chicago School Los Angeles Campus is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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Out of the 20 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Southern California landed the # 3 spot on the list. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at University of Southern California

#4

Brandman University

Irvine, CA

The excellent programs at Brandman University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best child development and psychology schools in California. Located in the large city of Irvine, Brandman is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Child Development & Psychology at Brandman University Report

The excellent programs at California State University - Northridge helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best child development and psychology schools in California. CSUN is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Northridge.

Full Child Development & Psychology at California State University - Northridge Report

University of California - Davis ranked #6 on this year’s Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California list. Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public college with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, child development majors at UC Davis accumulate an average of around $13,491 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $283.

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University of California - Berkeley came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Child Development majors at UC Berkeley take out an average of $12,518 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $266, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at University of California - Berkeley

University of California - Santa Barbara came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California ranking. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public school with a very large student population.

After completing their degree, child development graduates from UCSB carry an average student debtload of $15,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $311.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at University of California - Santa Barbara

Alliant International University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in California list. Located in the large city of San Diego, Alliant is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Child Development & Psychology at Alliant International University Report

University of California - Irvine did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for child development and psychology students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a very large student population.

While working on their degree, child development majors at UC Irvine accumulate an average of around $14,300 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $156.

Full Child Development & Psychology at University of California - Irvine Report

Best Child Development & Psychology Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Child Development & Psychology Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 672
Oregon 5
Nevada 52

One of 3 majors within the area of study, child development and psychology has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Child Development

Related Major Annual Graduates
General Psychology 141,695
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology 33,758
Other Psychology 2,683

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 20 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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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