2022 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Early Childhood Education (Income $0-$30k) in California

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 31,017 people earned their degree in early childhood education, making the major the 34th most popular in the United States.

Across California, there were 4,724 early childhood education graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 333 early childhood education graduates with average earnings and debt of $36,451 and $19,634 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer a degree in early childhood education. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great early childhood education programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the early childhood education program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 3 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Early Childhood Education (Income $0-$30k) in California

#1

Humphreys University - Stockton and Modesto Campuses

Stockton, California

#3 in overall quality

$9,334 Average Net Price

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Humphreys University - Stockton and Modesto Campuses landed the #1 spot on the list. Humphreys University is a small school located in Stockton, California that handed out 8 associates’s child development degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Humphreys University, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $9,334 for california associate degree child development students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Humphreys University - Stockton and Modesto Campuses.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%.

Read full report on Early Childhood Education at Humphreys University

#2

The University of Arizona Global Campus

San Diego, California

#1 in overall quality

$20,283 Average Net Price

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Arizona Global Campus landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in San Diego, California, this large private for-profit school awarded 287 diplomas to qualified associates’s child development students in 2019-2020.

UAGC also took the #1 spot in our “Best Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UAGC is $20,283 for california associate degree child development students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full UAGC Early Childhood Education Report

#3

Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, California

#2 in overall quality

$27,107 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Mount Saint Mary’s University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Child development Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out associates’s child development degrees to 3 students in 2019-2020.

MSMU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Mount Saint Mary’s University is $27,107 for california associate degree child development students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Full Mount Saint Mary’s University Early Childhood Education Report

• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Early Childhood Education (Income $0-$30k) in the Far Western US Region
• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Early Childhood Education (Income $0-$30k)

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

Footnotes

• *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 Vgrigas.

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