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Best Value Public Policy Bachelor's Degree Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Public Policy Bachelor's Degree Schools in California

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

5 Colleges
$32,971 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$38,098 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Policy Bachelor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 798 degrees and certificates were awarded to public policy students who went to a California college or university. This makes it the #103 most popular major in the state.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Public Policy Bachelor's Degree Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 5 schools in California to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for public policy students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

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 Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Public Policy Bachelor's Degree Colleges.

Best California Schools for Affordable Quality for a Bachelor's in Public Policy

Our analysis found University of California - Los Angeles to be the best value school for public policy students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in California. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UCLA are $13,258 a year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, UCLA also did well on our Best Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Full Public Policy at University of California - Los Angeles Report

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of California - Riverside is a great value for public policy students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the large city of Riverside, UCR is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UCR are $13,754 per year. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $70, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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Out of the 5 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 fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

USC undergraduate students pay an average of $61,503 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

USC excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Public Policy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list.

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#4

Mills College

Oakland, CA

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Mills College is a great value for public policy students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the large city of Oakland, Mills is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

Mills undergraduate students pay an average of $30,950 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Public Policy at Mills College Report

#5

Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA

The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Mount Saint Mary’s University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best value public policy schools in California. MSMU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at MSMU are $45,388 per year.

Full Public Policy at Mount Saint Mary’s University Report

Best Value Public Policy Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Public Policy Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 32
Oregon 50
Nevada 12
Alaska 0

One of 5 majors within the area of study, public policy has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Public Policy

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 58,326
Public Administration 16,905
Human Services 13,238
Community Organization & Advocacy 3,096
Other Public Administration 588

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 5 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to The Official CTBTO Photostream.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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