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Most Popular Schools for Sociology

2026 Most Popular Sociology Schools

There are 1,161 colleges that offer a degree in Sociology. The most popular schools, by student demand, are below:

Finding the Best Sociology School for You

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for Sociology students. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendance, there are many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. This report analyzed 1,161 schools in the United States to see which Sociology programs were the most popular. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from each school’s program.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for Sociology majors.

The most popular school in the United States for Sociology students is University of California-Los Angeles. University of California-Los Angeles is a public school located in Los Angeles, CA. This school awarded 682 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $41,763. Read full report on Sociology at University of California-Los Angeles

University of California-Santa Barbara landed the #2 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. University of California-Santa Barbara is a public school located in Santa Barbara, CA. During the most recent year for which we have data, 661 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $38,259. Read full report on Sociology at University of California-Santa Barbara

California State University-Northridge landed the #3 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. California State University-Northridge is a public school located in Northridge, CA. During the most recent year for which we have data, 389 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $36,905. Full Sociology at California State University-Northridge Report

California State University-Fullerton landed the #4 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. California State University-Fullerton is a public school located in Fullerton, CA. This school awarded 342 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $39,215. Full Sociology at California State University-Fullerton Report

California State University-Los Angeles landed the #5 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Located in Los Angeles, CA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 340 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $37,248. Read More…

California State University-Long Beach landed the #6 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Located in Long Beach, CA, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 315 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $38,082. Read More…

University of California-Berkeley landed the #7 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. University of California-Berkeley is a public school located in Berkeley, CA. This school awarded 296 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $57,445. Read More…

California State University-Sacramento comes in at #8 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. Located in Sacramento, CA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 293 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $42,434. Full Sociology at California State University-Sacramento Report

California State University-San Bernardino landed the #9 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. California State University-San Bernardino is a public school located in San Bernardino, CA. This school awarded 282 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $34,196. Read More…

Arizona State University Digital Immersion comes in at #10 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. Arizona State University Digital Immersion is a public school located in Scottsdale, AZ. This school awarded 270 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $48,210. Full Sociology at Arizona State University Digital Immersion Report

University of California-Davis landed the #11 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Located in Davis, CA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 270 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $41,123. Full Sociology at University of California-Davis Report

University of California-Riverside comes in at #12 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. Located in Riverside, CA, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 260 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $33,932. Read More…

University of California-Irvine comes in at #13 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. Located in Irvine, CA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 256 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,474. Full Sociology at University of California-Irvine Report

California State University-San Marcos landed the #14 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. California State University-San Marcos is a public school located in San Marcos, CA. This school awarded 254 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $42,878. Read full report on Sociology at California State University-San Marcos

University of Washington-Seattle Campus landed the #15 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. University of Washington-Seattle Campus is a public school located in Seattle, WA. During the most recent year for which we have data, 227 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $53,990. Read full report on Sociology at University of Washington-Seattle Campus

#16

Mt San Antonio College

Walnut, CA

Mt San Antonio College comes in at #16 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. Mt San Antonio College is a public school located in Walnut, CA. This school awarded 196 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $38,033. Read More…

#17

San Jose State University

San Jose, CA

San Jose State University comes in at #17 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. San Jose State University is a public school located in San Jose, CA. During the most recent year for which we have data, 194 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $58,993. Full Sociology at San Jose State University Report

California State Polytechnic University-Pomona comes in at #18 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. California State Polytechnic University-Pomona is a public school located in Pomona, CA. This school awarded 193 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $43,850. Read More…

California State University-Dominguez Hills landed the #19 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. California State University-Dominguez Hills is a public school located in Carson, CA. During the most recent year for which we have data, 193 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $37,973. Read full report on Sociology at California State University-Dominguez Hills

University of Colorado Boulder landed the #20 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Located in Boulder, CO, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 192 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $48,932. Full Sociology at University of Colorado Boulder Report

Texas A&M University-College Station landed the #21 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Texas A&M University-College Station is a public school located in College Station, TX. During the most recent year for which we have data, 187 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $54,018. Read More…

#22

CUNY Hunter College

New York, NY

CUNY Hunter College comes in at #22 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. CUNY Hunter College is a public school located in New York, NY. This school awarded 182 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $46,228. Read full report on Sociology at CUNY Hunter College

#23

Purdue University-Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

Purdue University-Main Campus landed the #23 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. Purdue University-Main Campus is a public school located in West Lafayette, IN. This school awarded 177 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $61,124. Full Sociology at Purdue University-Main Campus Report

#24

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

San Diego State University comes in at #24 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Sociology majors. Located in San Diego, CA, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 176 people earned their degree in Sociology from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $42,235. Full Sociology at San Diego State University Report

University of California-Santa Cruz landed the #25 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Sociology Schools ranking. University of California-Santa Cruz is a public school located in Santa Cruz, CA. This school awarded 176 degrees in Sociology in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $37,107. Read More…

#32

University at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY
#33

Long Beach City College

Long Beach, CA
#35

University of Oregon

Eugene, OR
#38

CUNY Queens College

Queens, NY
#40

Georgia State University

Atlanta, GA
#41

Stony Brook University

Stony Brook, NY
#43

CUNY Lehman College

Bronx, NY
#45

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI
#47

University at Albany

Albany, NY
#50

Bakersfield College

Bakersfield, CA

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for this major that just missed the list above.

Rank College Location
51 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
52 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
53 University of North Carolina at Greensboro Greensboro, NC
54 Citrus College Glendora, CA
55 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
56 University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst, MA
57 University of North Carolina at Pembroke Pembroke, NC
58 American Public University System Charles Town, WV
59 Western Washington University Bellingham, WA
60 California State University-Channel Islands Camarillo, CA
61 University of Maryland-College Park College Park, MD
62 The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville, TN
63 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC
64 New York University New York, NY
65 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
66 Merced College Merced, CA
67 Brigham Young University Provo, UT
68 Los Angeles Valley College Valley Glen, CA
69 Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ
70 El Camino Community College District Torrance, CA
71 Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY
72 Oregon State University Corvallis, OR
73 Southwestern College Chula Vista, CA
74 University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR
75 Cerritos College Norwalk, CA
76 The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX
77 University of Georgia Athens, GA
78 Central New Mexico Community College Albuquerque, NM
79 Ashford University San Diego, CA
80 University of California-Merced Merced, CA
81 University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
82 Clemson University Clemson, SC
83 Fullerton College Fullerton, CA
84 Ohio University-Main Campus Athens, OH
85 East Los Angeles College Monterey Park, CA
86 University of Houston Houston, TX
87 College of the Sequoias Visalia, CA
88 Pasadena City College Pasadena, CA
89 Santa Monica College Santa Monica, CA
90 Illinois State University Normal, IL
91 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
92 Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH
93 Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX
94 University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL
95 Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA
96 Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus University Park, PA
97 Santa Barbara City College Santa Barbara, CA
98 State University of New York at New Paltz New Paltz, NY
99 Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA
100 Coastline Community College Fountain Valley, CA
101 North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC
102 Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA
103 Rio Hondo College Whittier, CA
104 College of the Canyons Santa Clarita, CA
105 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA
106 University of Connecticut Storrs, CT
107 University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA
108 Fayetteville State University Fayetteville, NC
109 Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA
110 Chaffey College Rancho Cucamonga, CA
111 Montana State University Bozeman, MT
112 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, TX
113 Emory University Atlanta, GA
114 Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL
115 Riverside City College Riverside, CA
116 University of Chicago Chicago, IL
117 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
118 Modesto Junior College Modesto, CA
119 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
120 Indiana University-Bloomington Bloomington, IN
121 Southern Connecticut State University New Haven, CT
122 University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL
123 Oxnard College Oxnard, CA
124 Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
125 University of Arizona Tucson, AZ
126 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
127 Brown University Providence, RI
128 University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI
129 California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA
130 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
131 Oklahoma State University-Main Campus Stillwater, OK
132 University of New Mexico-Main Campus Albuquerque, NM
133 University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Stevens Point, WI
134 Allan Hancock College Santa Maria, CA
135 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA
136 Utah State University Logan, UT
137 Harvard University Cambridge, MA
138 MiraCosta College Oceanside, CA
139 University of South Florida Tampa, FL
140 Texas State University San Marcos, TX
141 Washington State University Pullman, WA
142 Christopher Newport University Newport News, VA
143 College of the Desert Palm Desert, CA
144 Santa Rosa Junior College Santa Rosa, CA
145 Stanford University Stanford, CA
146 The University of Montana Missoula, MT
147 University of Nevada-Las Vegas Las Vegas, NV
148 University of North Texas Denton, TX
149 Boston University Boston, MA
150 Imperial Valley College Imperial, CA
151 University of Massachusetts-Boston Boston, MA
152 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
153 Cypress College Cypress, CA
154 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
155 Portland State University Portland, OR
156 Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA
157 University of Delaware Newark, DE
158 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI
159 George Mason University Fairfax, VA
160 Glendale Community College Glendale, CA
161 Norfolk State University Norfolk, VA
162 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
163 Texas Woman’s University Denton, TX
164 Moorpark College Moorpark, CA
165 Palomar College San Marcos, CA
166 Sacramento City College Sacramento, CA
167 Antelope Valley Community College District Lancaster, CA
168 Norco College Norco, CA
169 Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, TN
170 University of Maryland-Baltimore County Baltimore, MD
171 University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, MO
172 Howard University Washington, DC
173 Idaho State University Pocatello, ID
174 Morehead State University Morehead, KY
175 Santa Ana College Santa Ana, CA
176 Binghamton University Vestal, NY
177 Bridgewater State University Bridgewater, MA
178 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA
179 CUNY City College New York, NY
180 Fordham University Bronx, NY
181 Los Angeles Pierce College Woodland Hills, CA
182 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
183 University of Central Oklahoma Edmond, OK
184 Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY
185 Coastal Carolina University Conway, SC
186 De Anza College Cupertino, CA
187 Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH
188 Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ
189 Baylor University Waco, TX
190 CUNY Graduate School and University Center New York, NY
191 University of Kansas Lawrence, KS
192 University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN
193 Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC
194 West Los Angeles College Culver City, CA
195 Cuesta College San Luis Obispo, CA
196 Los Angeles Mission College Sylmar, CA
197 Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH
198 Orange Coast College Costa Mesa, CA
199 University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, NC
200 East Carolina University Greenville, NC

Sociology by Region

See the most popular Sociology schools in a specific region of the United States.

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

More Sociology Rankings

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this Most Popular Sociology Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Sociology Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Sociology 31,211
Applied/Public Sociology 105
Rural Sociology 61
Sociology, Other 3
Related Major Annual Graduates
Economics 45,628
Political Science & Government 44,942
General Social Sciences 17,510
International Relations & Security 13,035
Anthropology 10,768

References

*The average salary above is for the top 25 schools only.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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