2023 Best Value Colleges for General Journalism in California (With Aid)
19
Ranked Colleges
1,561
Degrees Awarded
$19,600
Avg Net Price*
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 11,380 people earned their degree in general journalism, making the major the 69th most popular in the United States.
Across California, there were 1,561 general journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 19 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in general journalism. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great general journalism programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the general journalism program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.
Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid
The colleges and universities below are the best for california journalism students with aid.
Top 19 Best Value Colleges for General Journalism in California (With Aid)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fresno. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Fresno State is a public institution located in Fresno, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 85 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Fresno State also took the #9 spot in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Fresno State is $6,230 for california journalism students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on General Journalism at California State University - Fresno
Out of the 19 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Long Beach, California, this large public school awarded 109 degrees to qualified ’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
CSULB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list. It costs about $10,054 for California Journalism students with aid per year to attend California State University - Long Beach.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on General Journalism at CSULB
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend San Diego State University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. SDSU is a large public school situated in San Diego, California. It awarded 170 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
SDSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list. It costs about $13,845 for California Journalism students with aid per year to attend San Diego State University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full SDSU General Journalism Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Northridge. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. California State University - Northridge is a public institution located in Northridge, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 161 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california journalism students with aid list, CSUN has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Northridge is $8,523 for California Journalism students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on General Journalism at CSUN
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Sacramento. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Sacramento is a public institution located in Sacramento, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 41 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california journalism students with aid list, Sac State has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Sacramento is $11,178 for California Journalism students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Sacramento General Journalism Report
California State University - Los Angeles landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s journalism degrees to 10 students in 2020-2021.
Cal State LA also made our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list, coming in at #18. It costs about $3,302 for california journalism students with aid per year to attend California State University - Los Angeles.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on General Journalism at Cal State LA
With a ranking of #7, California State University - Dominguez Hills did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Dominguez Hills is located in Carson, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 21 ’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at CSUDH, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $4,026 for California Journalism students with aid per year to attend California State University - Dominguez Hills.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Dominguez Hills General Journalism Report
San Jose State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. San Jose State University is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 52 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california journalism students with aid list, San Jose State has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State is $16,542 for California Journalism students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on General Journalism at San Jose State
California State University - Chico did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #9. California State University - Chico is a fairly large public school situated in Chico, California. It awarded 49 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Chico State also took the #7 spot in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Chico State is $16,218 for california journalism students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full Chico State General Journalism Report
San Francisco State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. SFSU is a large school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 61 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
SFSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend SFSU is $14,459 for California Journalism students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full San Francisco State University General Journalism Report
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a large public school situated in San Luis Obispo, California. It awarded 80 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also made our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is $20,677 for california journalism students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Cal Poly San Luis Obispo General Journalism Report
University of Southern California came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. USC is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 113 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at USC, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $32,569 for California Journalism students with aid per year to attend USC.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about General Journalism at USC
Humboldt State University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. This medium-sized school is located in Arcata, California, and it awarded 17 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Humboldt State University also took the #19 spot in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Humboldt State University is $14,956 for california journalism students with aid.
Read more about General Journalism at Humboldt State University
With a ranking of #15, California Baptist University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. California Baptist University is located in Riverside, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 12 ’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our california journalism students with aid list, Cal Baptist has also earned the #15 rank in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $26,719 for california journalism students with aid per year to attend California Baptist University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full Cal Baptist General Journalism Report
Academy of Art University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Academy of Art University is a private for-profit institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 13 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Academy of Art University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Academy of Art University is $36,143 for California Journalism students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 5.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about General Journalism at Academy of Art University
Biola University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Biola University is a medium-sized school located in La Mirada, California that handed out 16 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Biola not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list. It costs about $33,269 for California Journalism students with aid per year to attend Biola.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full Biola General Journalism Report
Loyola Marymount University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 29 degrees to qualified ’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
Loyola Marymount also took the #6 spot in our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $44,467 for California Journalism students with aid per year to attend Loyola Marymount University.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about General Journalism at Loyola Marymount
With a ranking of #19, Pepperdine University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Pepperdine is a fairly large school located in Malibu, California that handed out 9 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Pepperdine not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #8 on our “Best General Journalism Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Pepperdine University is $38,846 for california journalism students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about General Journalism at Pepperdine
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Notes and References
References
- 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%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
Credits
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Jfurrer.
