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Most Popular Social Work Schools in California

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2023 Most Popular Social Work Schools in California

34 Colleges
$48,229 Avg Salary
$20,404 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Social Work School for You

In 2020-2021, 4,819 degrees and certificates were awarded to social work students who went to a California college or university. This makes it the #26 most popular major in the state.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Most Popular Social Work Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 34 schools in California to see which ones were the most popular programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Social Work program at each school on the list.

Check out the social work programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in California.

Our analysis found University of Southern California to be the most popular school for social work students who want to pursue a degree in California. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means California State University - Sacramento is a great place for social work students. Sac State is a very large public school located in the large city of Sacramento.

The average amount in student loans that social work majors at Sac State take out is $19,350. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $159.

Read full report on Social Work at California State University - Sacramento

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Los Angeles. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Social Work Schools in California list. Cal State LA is a very large public school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

The average amount in student loans that social work majors at Cal State LA take out is $12,394.

Full Social Work at California State University - Los Angeles Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Long Beach. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Social Work Schools in California list. Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public school with a very large student population.

On average, social work graduates from CSULB take out $12,434 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#5

Brandman University

Irvine, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Brandman University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Social Work Schools in California list. Located in the city of Irvine, Brandman is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

The average amount in student loans that social work majors at Brandman take out is $38,298.

Full Social Work at Brandman University Report

San Jose State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for social work students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Social Work at San Jose State University Report

Fresno Pacific University ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Social Work Schools in California list. Fresno Pacific is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Fresno.

The average amount in student loans that social work majors at Fresno Pacific take out is $24,549.

Read full report on Social Work at Fresno Pacific University

#8

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

San Diego State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Work Schools in California ranking. SDSU is a very large public school located in the city of San Diego.

After completing their degree, social work graduates from SDSU carry an average student debt load of $14,902.

Read full report on Social Work at San Diego State University

University of California - Berkeley did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for social work students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, social work majors at UC Berkeley accumulate an average of around $13,045 in student debt.

Read full report on Social Work at University of California - Berkeley

California State University - Fresno did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for social work students. It came in at #10 on the list. Fresno State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Fresno.

Social Work majors at Fresno State take out an average of $11,042 in student loans while working on their egree.

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Best Social Work Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Most Popular Social Work Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 678
Oregon 501
Nevada 462
Hawaii 199
Alaska 76

One of 5 majors within the area of study, social work has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Administration 16,905
Human Services 13,238
Public Policy 6,430
Community Organization & Advocacy 3,096
Other Public Administration 588

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 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 Army Medicine.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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