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Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools in California

2023 Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools in California

38 Colleges
$62,738 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Psychology Doctor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, psychology students earned 40,562 degrees and certificates from a California school, making the subject the 5th in the state.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 38 schools in California to see which ones offered the best doctor's degree programs for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Psychology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for psychology students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in California. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

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#2

Palo Alto University

Palo Alto, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Palo Alto University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Psychology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Pacific Graduate School of Psychology is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Palo Alto.

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Out of the 38 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles landed the # 3 spot on the list. The Chicago School Los Angeles Campus is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Claremont Graduate University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Psychology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the large suburb of Claremont, Claremont Graduate University is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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#5

Fielding Graduate University

Santa Barbara, CA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Fielding Graduate University is a great place for psychology students working on their doctor’s degree. Fielding is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Santa Barbara.

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University of Southern California came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Psychology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

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#7

The Wright Institute

Berkeley, CA

The Wright Institute came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Psychology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, The Wright Institute is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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With a ranking of #8, Fuller Theological Seminary did quite well on this year’s best schools for psychology students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the medium-sized city of Pasadena, Fuller is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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#9

Touro University Worldwide

Los Alamitos, CA

Touro University Worldwide came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Psychology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. TUW is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Los Alamitos.

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With a ranking of #10, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Irvine did quite well on this year’s best schools for psychology students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Irvine, The Chicago School Irvine Campus is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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Best Psychology Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 2,848
Oregon 2,071
Hawaii 511
Nevada 996
Alaska 133

Psychology Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
General Psychology 141,695
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology 33,758
Child Development & Psychology 17,542
Other Psychology 2,683

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 327,871
Social Sciences 205,984
Communication & Journalism 120,571
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 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 Nevit Dilmen.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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