2023 Best Bachelor's Degree Schools in California
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools and bootcamp that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
The Best Bachelor's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 89 schools in California to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school us, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.
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Top Bachelor's Degree Schools in California
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Claremont McKenna College to be the best school for students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in California. Claremont McKenna is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Claremont, California. It awarded 463 bachelor’s degrees in .
If you want to attend Claremont McKenna, expect to pay an average of $64,150 in tuition and fees. Of course, this could be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Harvey Mudd College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools in California. Harvey Mudd College is a very small private not-for-profit school located in Claremont, California that handed out 225 bachelor’s degrees in .
If you want to attend Harvey Mudd College, expect to pay an average of $66,255 in tuition and fees. Of course, this could be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. Stanford University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Stanford, California that handed out 1,655 bachelor’s degrees in .
The average tuition and fees at Stanford is $62,484. In-state students do not receive a discount, however you may be able to reduce your price if you receive financial aid.
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Out of the 89 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California Institute of Technology landed the # 4 spot on the list. Caltech is located in Pasadena, California and has a small student population. In , this school awarded 233 bachelor’s degrees to qualified students.
If you want to attend Caltech, expect to pay an average of $63,255 in tuition and fees. Of course, this could be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Pomona College is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Claremont, California, and it awarded 540 bachelor’s degrees in .
If you want to attend Pomona, expect to pay an average of $62,326 in tuition and fees. Of course, this could be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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Santa Clara University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in Santa Clara, California, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 1,667 bachelor’s degree awards in .
SCU does not offer a discount to in-state students, so the average tuition and fees for all undergraduates is $59,241. This amount may be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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University of California - Berkeley came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. University of California - Berkeley is a large public school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 10,551 bachelor’s degrees in .
Full-time students from California pay an average of $14,850 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend UC Berkeley. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $45,627.
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Golden Gate University - San Francisco came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. San Francisco, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 166 students in .
The average tuition and fees at Golden Gate University - San Francisco is $11,343. In-state students do not receive a discount, however you may be able to reduce your price if you receive financial aid.
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With a ranking of #9, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in San Luis Obispo, California, the large public school awarded 4,900 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in .
Students from California who attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo full time pay an average of $11,075 in tuition and fees. Out-of-state students pay an average of $30,995.
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With a ranking of #10, University of Southern California did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their bachelor’s degree. University of Southern California is a large private not-for-profit school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 5,440 bachelor’s degrees in .
USC does not offer a discount to in-state students, so the average tuition and fees for all undergraduates is $68,237. This amount may be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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With a ranking of #12, Brandman University did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their bachelor’s degree. Brandman is located in Irvine, California and has a medium-sized student population. In , this school awarded 976 bachelor’s degrees to qualified students.
If you don’t receive financial aid, you can expect a bill for $12,520 to cover tuition and fees at Brandman. The school does not offer an in-state discount.
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University of California - Los Angeles came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. University of California - Los Angeles is a large public school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 9,679 bachelor’s degrees in .
In-state students pay an average of $13,747 in tuition and fees if they attend UCLA full time. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $44,524.
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California State University Maritime Academy came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. This very small public school is located in Vallejo, California, and it awarded 151 bachelor’s degrees in .
Students from California who attend Cal Maritime full time pay an average of $7,672 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $19,552.
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University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree programs. This large public school is located in Santa Barbara, California, and it awarded 7,054 bachelor’s degrees in .
In-state students pay an average of $14,965 in tuition and fees if they attend UCSB full time. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $45,742.
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University of California - Davis landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree programs. Located in Davis, California, the large public school awarded 9,004 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in .
Students from California who attend UC Davis full time pay an average of $15,247 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $46,024.
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National University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #17 on the list. National University is a private not-for-profit institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,577 bachelor’s degrees in .
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Westmont College ranked #18 on this year’s Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. Westmont College is a small private not-for-profit school located in Santa Barbara, California that handed out 379 bachelor’s degrees in .
If you want to attend Westmont, expect to pay an average of $51,790 in tuition and fees. Of course, this could be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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With a ranking of #19, Dominican University of California did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their bachelor’s degree. DUofC is a private not-for-profit institution located in San Rafael, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 341 bachelor’s degrees in .
If you want to attend DUofC, expect to pay an average of $50,666 in tuition and fees. Of course, this could be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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University of San Francisco came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in San Francisco, California, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 1,341 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in .
If you don’t receive financial aid, you can expect a bill for $58,222 to cover tuition and fees at USFCA. The school does not offer an in-state discount.
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Loyola Marymount University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #21 on the list. Loyola Marymount is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,738 bachelor’s degrees in .
The average tuition and fees at Loyola Marymount is $58,489. In-state students do not receive a discount, however you may be able to reduce your price if you receive financial aid.
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University of California - San Diego ranked #22 on this year’s Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. UCSD is a public institution located in La Jolla, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 9,088 bachelor’s degrees in .
In-state students pay an average of $15,265 in tuition and fees if they attend UCSD full time. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $46,042.
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Fresno Pacific University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #23 on the list. Fresno Pacific University is a small private not-for-profit school located in Fresno, California that handed out 736 bachelor’s degrees in .
The average tuition and fees at Fresno Pacific is $35,558. In-state students do not receive a discount, however you may be able to reduce your price if you receive financial aid.
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With a ranking of #24, University of Phoenix - California did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in Ontario, California, the very small private for-profit school awarded 229 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in .
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With a ranking of #25, Pepperdine University did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their bachelor’s degree. Pepperdine is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Malibu, California. It awarded 824 bachelor’s degrees in .
Pepperdine does not offer a discount to in-state students, so the average tuition and fees for all undergraduates is $66,742. This amount may be reduced if you receive financial aid.
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Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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