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Best Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools in California

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2023 Best Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools in California

38 Colleges
$53,732 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Social Sciences Master's Degree School for You

Social Sciences is one of the most popular subjects to study in California. With 51,430 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 4th out of all the majors we track in the state.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right 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.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 38 schools in California to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best for social sciences majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 10 Best Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for social sciences students who want to pursue a master’s degree in California. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford.

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The excellent master’s degree programs at University of California - Irvine helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best social sciences schools in California. Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of California - Irvine

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - San Diego. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California list. UCSD is a very large public school located in the city of La Jolla.

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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Southern California is a great place for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Southern California

University of California - Los Angeles landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree social sciences programs. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a very large student population.

Full Social Sciences at University of California - Los Angeles Report

With a ranking of #8, University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well on this year’s best schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of California - Santa Barbara

Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree social sciences programs. Middlebury Institute is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize suburb of Monterey.

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Azusa Pacific University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree social sciences programs. Located in the large suburb of Azusa, Azusa Pacific is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Social Sciences at Azusa Pacific University Report

Best Social Sciences Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Social Sciences Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 3,812
Oregon 2,748
Hawaii 586
Nevada 925
Alaska 90

Social Sciences Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 49,282
Economics 49,055
Sociology 38,475
General Social Sciences 18,997
International Relations & National Security 14,306
Anthropology 11,415
Criminology 11,039
Geography & Cartography 8,526
Other Social Sciences 2,414
Urban Studies 1,507
Sociology & Anthropology 541
Archeology 339
Demography & Population Studies 88

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 327,871
Psychology 195,678
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 AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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