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2023 Most Popular Sociology Schools

1,181 Colleges
$31,426 Avg Salary
$24,587 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Sociology School for You

Sociology is the #27 most popular major in the country with 38,475 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. This report analyzed 1,181 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 Sociology program at each school on the list.

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

Our analysis found University of California - Los Angeles to be the most popular school for sociology students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. UCLA is a fairly large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.

After completing their degree, sociology graduates from UCLA carry an average student debt load of $15,000. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $223.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Santa Barbara. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Sociology Schools list. UCSB is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara.

On average, sociology graduates from UCSB take out $15,000 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $233.

Full Sociology at University of California - Santa Barbara Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Northridge. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Sociology Schools list. Located in the large city of Northridge, CSUN is a public school with a very large student population.

After completing their degree, sociology graduates from CSUN carry an average student debt load of $12,531.

Full Sociology at California State University - Northridge Report

Out of the 1,181 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Riverside landed the # 4 spot on the list. UCR is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Riverside.

After completing their degree, sociology graduates from UCR carry an average student debt load of $18,013. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $112.

Read full report on Sociology at University of California - Riverside

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means California State University - Los Angeles is a great place for sociology students. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, Cal State LA is a public school with a very large student population.

After completing their degree, sociology graduates from Cal State LA carry an average student debt load of $12,273.

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California State University - Fullerton ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Sociology Schools list. Cal State Fullerton is a very large public school located in the suburb of Fullerton.

After completing their degree, sociology graduates from Cal State Fullerton carry an average student debt load of $14,313.

Read full report on Sociology at California State University - Fullerton

University of California - Berkeley landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular sociology programs. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Berkeley.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at UC Berkeley accumulate an average of around $13,305 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $264, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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With a ranking of #8, Mt. San Antonio College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for sociology students. Mt. SAC is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Walnut.

Read full report on Sociology at Mt. San Antonio College

California State University - Long Beach did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for sociology students. It came in at #9 on the list. CSULB is a very large public school located in the city of Long Beach.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at CSULB accumulate an average of around $12,979 in student debt.

Full Sociology at California State University - Long Beach Report

University of California - Irvine ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Sociology Schools list. UC Irvine is a very large public school located in the large city of Irvine.

On average, sociology graduates from UC Irvine take out $15,073 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $160, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Sociology at University of California - Irvine Report

California State University - Dominguez Hills ranked #11 on this year’s Most Popular Sociology Schools list. CSUDH is a large public school located in the small city of Carson.

On average, sociology graduates from CSUDH take out $14,950 in student loans while working on their degree.

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California State University - Sacramento came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Located in the city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public college with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that sociology majors at Sac State take out is $15,000. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $142, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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Arizona State University - Skysong landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular sociology programs. ASU - Skysong is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Scottsdale.

The average amount in student loans that sociology majors at ASU - Skysong take out is $26,301. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $322, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Sociology at Arizona State University - Skysong Report

With a ranking of #14, California State University - San Marcos did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for sociology students. Located in the suburb of San Marcos, CSUSM is a public school with a large student population.

The average amount in student loans that sociology majors at CSUSM take out is $14,751.

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University of California - Davis came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. UC Davis is a very large public school located in the small suburb of Davis.

The average amount in student loans that sociology majors at UC Davis take out is $12,468. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $233.

Read full report on Sociology at University of California - Davis

University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular sociology programs. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public school with a very large student population.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at UW Seattle accumulate an average of around $15,000 in student debt.

Full Sociology at University of Washington - Seattle Campus Report

With a ranking of #17, University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for sociology students. Located in the small city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that sociology majors at UC Santa Cruz take out is $18,500. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $158.

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With a ranking of #18, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for sociology students. Located in the large suburb of Pomona, Cal Poly Pomona is a public college with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at Cal Poly Pomona accumulate an average of around $12,979 in student debt.

Read full report on Sociology at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona

California State University - San Bernardino ranked #19 on this year’s Most Popular Sociology Schools list. Located in the medium-sized city of San Bernardino, CSUSB is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, sociology graduates from CSUSB carry an average student debt load of $13,022.

Full Sociology at California State University - San Bernardino Report

#20

Lehman College

Bronx, NY

Lehman College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for sociology students. It came in at #20 on the list. Lehman is a large public school located in the large city of Bronx.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at Lehman accumulate an average of around $11,508 in student debt.

Read full report on Sociology at Lehman College

#20

Hunter College

New York, NY

With a ranking of #20, Hunter College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for sociology students. Hunter is a fairly large public school located in the large city of New York.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at Hunter accumulate an average of around $11,000 in student debt.

Read full report on Sociology at Hunter College

California State University - East Bay came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Hayward, Cal State East Bay is a public college with a large student population.

While working on their degree, sociology majors at Cal State East Bay accumulate an average of around $17,600 in student debt.

Full Sociology at California State University - East Bay Report

#23

Fullerton College

Fullerton, CA

With a ranking of #23, Fullerton College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for sociology students. Fullerton College is a large public school located in the large suburb of Fullerton.

Read More…

#24

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA

Virginia Tech ranked #24 on this year’s Most Popular Sociology Schools list. Located in the small city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public college with a very large student population.

On average, sociology graduates from Virginia Tech take out $22,750 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Sociology at Virginia Tech

#25

University at Albany

Albany, NY

University at Albany ranked #25 on this year’s Most Popular Sociology Schools list. UAlbany is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Albany.

Sociology majors at UAlbany take out an average of $23,922 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $246, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Sociology at University at Albany Report

#26

San Jose State University

San Jose, CA
#29

Long Beach City College

Long Beach, CA
#31

Citrus College

Glendora, CA
#32

Queens College

Queens, NY
#32

East Los Angeles College

Monterey Park, CA
#35

University at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY
#36

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL
#39

Georgia State University

Atlanta, GA
#42

Chaffey College

Rancho Cucamonga, CA
#43

Stony Brook University

Stony Brook, NY
#47

Sonoma State University

Rohnert Park, CA

Additional Award Winners

This list shows the remainder of the schools awarded a Most Popular Sociology Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 1181 different United States sociology schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA
52 Bakersfield College Bakersfield, CA
53 The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX
53 Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL
53 San Diego State University San Diego, CA
56 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
57 Pasadena City College Pasadena, CA
58 Western Washington University Bellingham, WA
59 University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA
60 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
61 El Camino College Torrance, CA
62 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
62 University of North Carolina at Pembroke Pembroke, NC
64 University of Oklahoma Norman Campus Norman, OK
65 Central New Mexico Community College Albuquerque, NM
65 University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI
67 Cerritos College Norwalk, CA
68 University of Oregon Eugene, OR
69 Santa Barbara City College Santa Barbara, CA
70 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
70 Oxnard College Oxnard, CA
72 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL
72 College of the Canyons Santa Clarita, CA
74 SUNY New Paltz New Paltz, NY
75 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC
76 Santa Rosa Junior College Santa Rosa, CA
77 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
78 University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
79 Los Angeles Valley College Valley Glen, CA
79 University of Maryland - College Park College Park, MD
81 Michigan State University East Lansing, MI
82 Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH
82 Merced College Merced, CA
84 The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN
84 Florida International University Miami, FL
86 American Public University System Charles Town, WV
87 Ventura College Ventura, CA
87 Texas State University San Marcos, TX
89 Arizona State University - Tempe Tempe, AZ
90 Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA
91 Rio Hondo College Whittier, CA
92 University of California - Merced Merced, CA
92 College of the Sequoias Visalia, CA
92 Sacramento City College Sacramento, CA
95 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
96 Modesto Junior College Modesto, CA
96 University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point Stevens Point, WI
98 University of Georgia Athens, GA
99 Riverside City College Riverside, CA
100 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
100 Antelope Valley College Lancaster, CA
102 Palomar College San Marcos, CA
103 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA
104 California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA
104 University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA
104 Moorpark College Moorpark, CA
104 Ohio University - Athens Campus Athens, OH
108 University of Illinois at Chicago Chicago, IL
108 Oregon State University Corvallis, OR
108 University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR
111 Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA
111 Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL
111 Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX
114 Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY
114 Southern Connecticut State University New Haven, CT
114 Santa Monica College Santa Monica, CA
114 Glendale Community College Glendale, CA
114 Texas Woman’s University Denton, TX
119 York College Jamaica, NY
119 New York University New York, NY
119 University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI
122 University of Nevada - Las Vegas Las Vegas, NV
122 Kean University Union, NJ
124 University of North Texas Denton, TX
125 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
126 MiraCosta College Oceanside, CA
126 Portland State University Portland, OR
128 Diablo Valley College Pleasant Hill, CA
129 University of South Florida - Main Campus Tampa, FL
129 Emory University Atlanta, GA
129 Binghamton University Vestal, NY
129 Southwestern College Chula Vista, CA
129 Cypress College Cypress, CA
134 North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC
134 The City College of New York New York, NY
134 Kansas State University Manhattan, KS
134 Illinois State University Normal, IL
138 University of Massachusetts - Boston Boston, MA
138 University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL
138 University of Chicago Chicago, IL
141 Utah State University Logan, UT
142 De Anza College Cupertino, CA
142 Indiana University - Bloomington Bloomington, IN
144 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
144 Fresno City College Fresno, CA
144 Saddleback College Mission Viejo, CA
144 Canada College Redwood City, CA
144 Duke University Durham, NC
144 University of Arizona Tucson, AZ
150 Allan Hancock College Santa Maria, CA
150 Oklahoma State University - Main Campus Stillwater, OK
150 Suffolk University Boston, MA
150 Hartnell College Salinas, CA
154 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
154 Chabot College Hayward, CA
154 Harvard University Cambridge, MA
154 Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA
154 Norfolk State University Norfolk, VA
159 University of New Mexico - Main Campus Albuquerque, NM
159 Foothill College Los Altos Hills, CA
159 University of Idaho Moscow, ID
159 Orange Coast College Costa Mesa, CA
159 Montana State University Bozeman, MT
159 University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Colorado Springs, CO
159 University of Connecticut Storrs, CT
166 Miami University - Oxford Oxford, OH
166 Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ
166 Cabrillo College Aptos, CA
169 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
169 Christopher Newport University Newport News, VA
171 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, TX
171 University of Delaware Newark, DE
171 Imperial Valley College Imperial, CA
174 Fayetteville State University Fayetteville, NC
174 Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA
174 Bridgewater State University Bridgewater, MA
174 Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN

Honorable Mentions

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 Sociology Schools award.

Rank College Location
178 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
178 Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY
178 San Bernardino Valley College San Bernardino, CA
181 University of Houston Houston, TX
181 Santa Ana College Santa Ana, CA
181 College of Charleston Charleston, SC
181 East Carolina University Greenville, NC
181 Brigham Young University - Idaho Rexburg, ID
186 College of the Desert Palm Desert, CA
186 University of Wisconsin - Whitewater Whitewater, WI
186 Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, TN
186 University of Maryland - Baltimore County Baltimore, MD
186 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA
191 University of North Florida Jacksonville, FL
191 University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN
191 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
191 The Graduate Center, CUNY New York, NY
191 University of West Georgia Carrollton, GA
196 Norco College Norco, CA
196 University of Central Oklahoma Edmond, OK
196 The University of Montana Missoula, MT
196 New Jersey City University Jersey City, NJ
200 Coastline Community College Fountain Valley, CA
200 University of New Hampshire - Main Campus Durham, NH
200 Berkeley City College Berkeley, CA
200 Worcester State University Worcester, MA
200 Los Angeles Mission College Sylmar, CA
200 Cuesta College San Luis Obispo, CA
200 Cosumnes River College Sacramento, CA
207 Washington State University Pullman, WA
207 South Dakota State University Brookings, SD
209 American River College Sacramento, CA
209 University of Northern Colorado Greeley, CO
209 Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH
209 University of Missouri - Columbia Columbia, MO
209 Coastal Carolina University Conway, SC
209 Clemson University Clemson, SC
215 University of Florida-Online Gainesville, FL
215 Wayne State University Detroit, MI
215 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
215 Boston University Boston, MA
215 Crafton Hills College Yucaipa, CA
215 Temple University Philadelphia, PA
221 University of San Diego San Diego, CA
221 University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA
221 Stanford University Stanford, CA
221 Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL
225 Oklahoma City Community College Oklahoma City, OK
225 Fordham University Bronx, NY
225 Grossmont College El Cajon, CA
225 Sierra College Rocklin, CA
225 University of Miami Coral Gables, FL
230 San Jose City College San Jose, CA
230 University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC
232 Keene State College Keene, NH
232 University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI
232 University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver, CO
232 Sam Houston State University Huntsville, TX
232 West Valley College Saratoga, CA

Sociology by Region

View the Most Popular Sociology Schools for a specific region near you.

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

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

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 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 Kontos.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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