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Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools

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2023 Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools

525 Colleges
$32,991 Avg Salary
$24,438 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best General Social Sciences School for You

In 2020-2021, 18,997 people earned a degree or certificate in general social sciences, making the major the #55 most popular in the United States.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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 General Social Sciences Schools ranking. This report analyzed 525 schools in the United States to see which ones were the most popular programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the General Social Sciences program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for social sciences majors pursuing a .

#1

East Los Angeles College

Monterey Park, CA

Our analysis found East Los Angeles College to be the most popular school for general social sciences students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. East Los Angeles College is a very large public school located in the suburb of Monterey Park.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from East Los Angeles College carry an average student debt load of $5,500.

Full General Social Sciences at East Los Angeles College Report

#2

Sierra College

Rocklin, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Sierra College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. Located in the suburb of Rocklin, Sierra College is a public college with a large student population.

Full General Social Sciences at Sierra College Report

#3

College of the Canyons

Santa Clarita, CA

Out of the 525 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, College of the Canyons landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the large suburb of Santa Clarita, College of the Canyons is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full General Social Sciences at College of the Canyons Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Northern Virginia Community College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public school with a very large student population.

While working on their degree, social sciences majors at Northern Virginia Community College accumulate an average of around $11,000 in student debt.

Full General Social Sciences at Northern Virginia Community College Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Mt. San Antonio College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. Located in the suburb of Walnut, Mt. SAC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full General Social Sciences at Mt. San Antonio College Report

#6

Santa Rosa Junior College

Santa Rosa, CA

Santa Rosa Junior College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general social sciences students. It came in at #6 on the list. SRJC is a large public school located in the medium-sized city of Santa Rosa.

Full General Social Sciences at Santa Rosa Junior College Report

#7

American River College

Sacramento, CA

American River College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Sacramento, American River is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full General Social Sciences at American River College Report

#8

Palomar College

San Marcos, CA

Palomar College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general social sciences programs. Located in the suburb of San Marcos, Palomar College is a public school with a large student population.

Full General Social Sciences at Palomar College Report

#9

Butte College

Oroville, CA

Butte College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general social sciences programs. Butte College is a medium-sized public school located in the rural area of Oroville.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Butte College carry an average student debt load of $10,000.

Full General Social Sciences at Butte College Report

Brookdale Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general social sciences students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the rural area of Lincroft, Brookdale Community College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Brookdale Community College carry an average student debt load of $11,315.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at Brookdale Community College

Tidewater Community College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Norfolk, Tidewater Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Tidewater Community College take out is $12,000.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at Tidewater Community College

#12

Ohlone College

Fremont, CA

Ohlone College came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Fremont, Ohlone College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Social Sciences majors at Ohlone College take out an average of $7,500 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read More…

Washington State University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general social sciences programs. Located in the town of Pullman, Wazzu is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Wazzu take out is $25,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $229.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at Washington State University

#14

University at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY

With a ranking of #14, University at Buffalo did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general social sciences students. University at Buffalo is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Buffalo.

On average, social sciences graduates from University at Buffalo take out $22,250 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $213, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full General Social Sciences at University at Buffalo Report

#15

Reynolds Community College

Richmond, VA

Reynolds Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general social sciences students. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the suburb of Richmond, Reynolds Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Reynolds Community College take out is $13,280.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at Reynolds Community College

#16

University of Oregon

Eugene, OR

University of Oregon landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general social sciences programs. UO is a fairly large public school located in the city of Eugene.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at UO take out is $24,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $507, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

#17

Antelope Valley College

Lancaster, CA

With a ranking of #17, Antelope Valley College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general social sciences students. Located in the suburb of Lancaster, Antelope Valley College is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Antelope Valley College carry an average student debt load of $9,875.

Read More…

#18

City College of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA

With a ranking of #18, City College of San Francisco did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general social sciences students. City College of San Francisco is a fairly large public school located in the city of San Francisco.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at City College of San Francisco

#19

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL

Florida State University landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general social sciences programs. Florida State is a fairly large public school located in the city of Tallahassee.

On average, social sciences graduates from Florida State take out $26,250 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $185, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at Florida State University

#20

Folsom Lake College

Folsom, CA

Folsom Lake College ranked #20 on this year’s Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. Folsom Lake is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Folsom.

Read More…

#21

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University ranked #21 on this year’s Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Vanderbilt take out is $12,917. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $587, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full General Social Sciences at Vanderbilt University Report

#22

Portland State University

Portland, OR

Portland State University ranked #22 on this year’s Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. Portland State University is a fairly large public school located in the city of Portland.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Portland State University carry an average student debt load of $31,381.

Read More…

Thomas Nelson Community College ranked #23 on this year’s Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools list. TNCC is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize city of Hampton.

Social Sciences majors at TNCC take out an average of $10,375 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full General Social Sciences at Thomas Nelson Community College Report

With a ranking of #24, Tulsa Community College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general social sciences students. Tulsa Community College is a large public school located in the large city of Tulsa.

On average, social sciences graduates from Tulsa Community College take out $15,423 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read More…

#25

Merced College

Merced, CA

Merced College came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools ranking. Merced Community College District is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Merced.

While working on their degree, social sciences majors at Merced Community College District accumulate an average of around $8,327 in student debt.

Read full report on General Social Sciences at Merced College

#26

De Anza College

Cupertino, CA
#27

Bellevue University

Bellevue, NE
#28

Mt. San Jacinto College

San Jacinto, CA
#30

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA
#31

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL
#34

Citrus College

Glendora, CA
#35

Wilmington University

New Castle, DE
#35

College of San Mateo

San Mateo, CA
#37

Bard College

Annandale-On-Hudson, NY
#38

Yuba College

Marysville, CA
#41

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI
#43

Crafton Hills College

Yucaipa, CA
#45

Mercy College

Dobbs Ferry, NY
#46

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, UT
#47

Laney College

Oakland, CA
#48

Porterville College

Porterville, CA
#49

Sacramento City College

Sacramento, CA
#50

Erie Community College

Buffalo, NY

Remaining Award Winners

This list represents the rest of the colleges awarded a Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 525 different United States general social sciences schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
50 Frederick Community College Frederick, MD
52 San Diego Miramar College San Diego, CA
53 Woodland Community College Woodland, CA
54 North Carolina Central University Durham, NC
55 Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA
56 California State University - Monterey Bay Seaside, CA
56 Essex County College Newark, NJ
58 University of Washington - Seattle Campus Seattle, WA
59 Merritt College Oakland, CA
60 Imperial Valley College Imperial, CA
61 Fresno City College Fresno, CA
62 Rogers State University Claremore, OK
63 Shasta College Redding, CA
63 California State University - Chico Chico, CA
65 Kansas State University Manhattan, KS
66 Ramapo College of New Jersey Mahwah, NJ
67 Foothill College Los Altos Hills, CA
68 California State University - Stanislaus Turlock, CA
69 Virginia Western Community College Roanoke, VA
70 Dominican College of Blauvelt Orangeburg, NY
71 San Diego State University San Diego, CA
71 New York University New York, NY
73 Arizona Western College Yuma, AZ
73 Harrisburg Area Community College Harrisburg, PA
75 California University of Pennsylvania California, PA
76 Troy University Troy, AL
77 Minerva Schools at Keck Graduate Institute Claremont, CA
78 College of the Siskiyous Weed, CA

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools award.

Rank College Location
79 The University of Virginia’s College at Wise Wise, VA
80 Northern Oklahoma College Tonkawa, OK
81 Cosumnes River College Sacramento, CA
82 Glendale Community College Glendale, CA
83 Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD
83 Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Tallahassee, FL
85 Central Texas College Killeen, TX
86 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL
87 The University of West Florida Pensacola, FL
88 Lake Tahoe Community College South Lake Tahoe, CA
89 Boise State University Boise, ID
89 Grand Valley State University Allendale, MI
91 Touro College New York, NY
92 Grambling State University Grambling, LA
92 SUNY Empire State College Saratoga Springs, NY
94 University of South Carolina - Beaufort Bluffton, SC
95 Adelphi University Garden City, NY
95 Utica College Utica, NY
95 Rio Hondo College Whittier, CA
95 California State University - San Marcos San Marcos, CA
99 Metropolitan State University Saint Paul, MN
99 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
99 Whittier College Whittier, CA
102 Belhaven University Jackson, MS
102 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ
104 Massasoit Community College Brockton, MA
104 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA

General Social Sciences by Region

View the Most Popular General Social Sciences Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 12 majors within the area of study, general social sciences has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Social Sciences

Related Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 49,282
Economics 49,055
Sociology 38,475
International Relations & National Security 14,306
Anthropology 11,415

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 Manfred Werner (Tsui).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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