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Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools

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2023 Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools

204 Colleges
$62,624 Avg Salary

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

With 205,984 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, social sciences is the #6 most popular major in the United States.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. 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 Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 204 schools in the United States to see which ones were the most popular doctor's degree programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Social Sciences program at each school on the list.

Check out the social sciences doctor's degree programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the United States.

#1

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

Our analysis found University of Chicago to be the most popular school for social sciences students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in the United States. Located in the large city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

About 47% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 53% are male.

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#2

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

The in-demand doctor’s degree programs at Harvard University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular social sciences schools in the United States. Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Cambridge.

Of the 77 students majoring in social sciences at Harvard, 61% are male and 39% are female.

Full Social Sciences at Harvard University Report

The in-demand doctor’s degree programs at University of Wisconsin - Madison helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular social sciences schools in the United States. UW - Madison is a very large public school located in the city of Madison.

About 45% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 55% are male.

Full Social Sciences at University of Wisconsin - Madison Report

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of California - Berkeley is a great place for social sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley.

Women make up 39% of the social sciences majors at the school.

Full Social Sciences at University of California - Berkeley Report

#5

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Stanford University is a great place for social sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Women make up 53% of the social sciences majors at the school.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Stanford University

University of California - Los Angeles landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree social sciences programs. UCLA is a very large public school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

Of the 62 students majoring in social sciences at UCLA, 60% are male and 40% are female.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of California - Los Angeles

#7

Capella University

Minneapolis, MN

Capella University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, Capella University is a private for-profit school with a very large student population.

About 89% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 11% are male.

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University of Maryland - College Park did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for social sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public college with a very large student population.

About 37% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 63% are male.

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University of Minnesota - Twin Cities ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public school with a very large student population.

Women make up 29% of the social sciences majors at the school.

Full Social Sciences at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Report

Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

About 47% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 53% are male.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Columbia University in the City of New York

#11

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ

Princeton University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree social sciences programs. Located in the city of Princeton, Princeton is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

About 42% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 58% are male.

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#11

Yale University

New Haven, CT

Yale University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Yale is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New Haven.

About 44% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 56% are male.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Yale University

#13

The Graduate Center, CUNY

New York, NY

The Graduate Center, CUNY came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. The Graduate Center is a moderately-sized public school located in the large city of New York.

Of the 50 students majoring in social sciences at The Graduate Center, 40% are male and 60% are female.

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#14

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

Cornell University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Cornell is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Ithaca.

Of the 47 students majoring in social sciences at Cornell, 47% are male and 53% are female.

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#14

New York University

New York, NY

New York University ranked #14 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. NYU is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

About 40% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 60% are male.

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#14

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

Michigan State University ranked #14 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public school with a very large student population.

Of the 47 students majoring in social sciences at Michigan State, 49% are male and 51% are female.

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#14

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania ranked #14 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. UPenn is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.

Of the 47 students majoring in social sciences at UPenn, 66% are male and 34% are female.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Pennsylvania

University of California - Irvine came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. UC Irvine is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Irvine.

Of the 47 students majoring in social sciences at UC Irvine, 49% are male and 51% are female.

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

With a ranking of #19, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. U-M is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor.

Women make up 46% of the social sciences majors at the school.

Full Social Sciences at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Report

#19

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University ranked #19 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston.

Of the 46 students majoring in social sciences at Northwestern, 74% are male and 26% are female.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Northwestern University

Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for social sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #21 on the list. Ohio State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Columbus.

Of the 45 students majoring in social sciences at Ohio State, 58% are male and 42% are female.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Ohio State University - Main Campus

Indiana University - Bloomington did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for social sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #22 on the list. Located in the small city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 44 students majoring in social sciences at IU Bloomington, 34% are male and 66% are female.

Full Social Sciences at Indiana University - Bloomington Report

University of California - Davis came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. UC Davis is a very large public school located in the small suburb of Davis.

About 41% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 59% are male.

Full Social Sciences at University of California - Davis Report

#24

Duke University

Durham, NC

Duke University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Durham.

About 30% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 70% are male.

Read More…

#25

University of Arizona

Tucson, AZ

With a ranking of #25, University of Arizona did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the large city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 44% of the students majoring in social sciences at the school are women while 56% are male.

Full Social Sciences at University of Arizona Report

#27

Boston University

Boston, MA
#28

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional popular schools for Social Sciences students that almost earned our Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
35 Texas A&M University - College Station College Station, TX
35 Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD
37 Georgia State University Atlanta, GA
37 Claremont Graduate University Claremont, CA
39 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA
40 Brown University Providence, RI
40 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA

Social Sciences by Region

View the Most Popular Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

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

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 26 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 AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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