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Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools in California

2023 Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools in California

11 Colleges
$72,774 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Sociology Doctor's Degree School for You

Sociology is one of the most popular subjects to study in California. With 15,498 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 6th out of all the majors we track in the state.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. 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.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools in California ranking. Our analysis looked at 11 schools in California to see which doctor's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Sociology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for sociology students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in California. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

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The excellent doctor’s degree programs at University of California - Berkeley helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best sociology schools in California. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Berkeley.

Full Sociology at University of California - Berkeley Report

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Southern California. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Sociology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Los Angeles. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Sociology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. UCLA is a fairly large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Irvine. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Sociology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. UC Irvine is a fairly large public school located in the city of Irvine.

Full Sociology at University of California - Irvine Report

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University of California - Davis came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Sociology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. UC Davis is a very large public school located in the suburb of Davis.

Full Sociology at University of California - Davis Report

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University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for sociology students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. UCSB is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara.

Full Sociology at University of California - Santa Barbara Report

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With a ranking of #8, University of California - San Diego did quite well on this year’s best schools for sociology students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the large city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public school with a very large student population.

Full Sociology at University of California - San Diego Report

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University of California - Riverside did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for sociology students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. UCR is a very large public school located in the large city of Riverside.

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University of California - Santa Cruz came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Sociology Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in the small city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public school with a large student population.

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Best Sociology Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Sociology Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 650
Oregon 341
Nevada 120
Hawaii 96
Alaska 5

Sociology is one of 12 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Sociology

Related Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 49,282
Economics 49,055
General Social Sciences 18,997
International Relations & National Security 14,306
Anthropology 11,415

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 11 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 Kontos.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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