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2025 Best Computer Engineering Schools in California

22 Colleges in California
3,190 CE Degrees Awarded
$81,699 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in computer engineering, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #56 in the country in terms of popularity. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

College Factual reviewed 22 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of computer engineering. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,190 degrees in computer engineering annually.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Computer Engineering School

Best Computer Engineering Schools in California The ce program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Computer Engineering rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for computer engineering schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Computer Engineering Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in CE
Master's Degrees in CE
Doctor's Degrees in CE

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Computer Engineering Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Computer Engineering in California

The schools below may not offer all types of ce degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top California Schools in CE

1
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
244 CE Degrees Awarded
$121,868 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat Santa Clara University if you want to pursue a degree in computer engineering. Located in the city of Santa Clara, SCU is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #53 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means SCU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 244 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at SCU in the most recent year we have data available. Those computer engineering students who get their degree from Santa Clara University receive $40,169 more than the standard ce student.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from Santa Clara University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
213 CE Degrees Awarded
$96,256 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of California - San Diego if you want to pursue a degree in computer engineering. UCSD is a fairly large public university located in the large city of La Jolla. A Best Colleges rank of #49 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.

There were about 213 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the computer engineering degree program at University of California - San Diego get $14,557 above the typical college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of California - San Diego

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BS in Computer Science - Software Engineering Program Name

With a software engineering degree, you'll learn the fundamental concepts and principles – a systematic approach used to develop software on time, on budget and within specifications – throughout your online college classes at SNHU.

More information about a degree in BS in Computer Science - Software Engineering from Southern New Hampshire University
3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In CA
92 CE Degrees Awarded

It is hard to beat University of Southern California if you wish to pursue a degree in computer engineering. USC is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #13 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were about 92 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of Southern California

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
365 CE Degrees Awarded
9.6% Growth in Graduates

It's difficult to beat University of California - Irvine if you wish to pursue a degree in computer engineering. UC Irvine is a fairly large public university located in the city of Irvine. A Best Colleges rank of #73 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UC Irvine is a great university overall.

There were roughly 365 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the ce program make about $79,812 for their early career.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of California - Irvine

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
158 CE Degrees Awarded
$111,560 Median Starting Salary

Located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #165 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a great university overall.

There were approximately 158 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the most recent year we have data available. Those computer engineering students who get their degree from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo make $29,861 more than the average ce graduate.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
13th Most Popular In CA
97 CE Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #28 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were about 97 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of California - Los Angeles

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
119 CE Degrees Awarded
16.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #55 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UC Davis is a great university overall.

There were about 119 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the computer engineering major at University of California - Davis make $14,719 more than the typical graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of California - Davis

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
157 CE Degrees Awarded
30.6% Growth in Graduates

UC Santa Cruz is a large public university located in the city of Santa Cruz. A Best Colleges rank of #91 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UC Santa Cruz is a great university overall.

There were approximately 157 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Santa Cruz in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, ce degree recipients usually make about $79,969 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of California - Santa Cruz

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
230 CE Degrees Awarded
8.3% Growth in Graduates

UC Merced is a moderately-sized public university located in the suburb of Merced. This university ranks 51st out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 230 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Merced in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the ce program earn around $58,835 for their early career.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from University of California - Merced

10
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
118 CE Degrees Awarded
22.0% Growth in Graduates

SDSU is a very large public university located in the city of San Diego. A Best Colleges rank of #185 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means SDSU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 118 computer engineering students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the ce program state that they receive average early career earnings of $76,812.

More information about a degree in computer engineering from San Diego State University

Best Computer Engineering Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Computer Engineering Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 300 122
Oregon 266 43
Nevada 192 187
Hawaii 164 22
Alaska 119 6

View All Rankings >

One of 41 majors within the Engineering area of study, Computer Engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.

CE Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Computer Engineering 2,349
Software Engineering 764
Other Computer Engineering 40
Computer Hardware Engineering 37

View All CE Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Mechanical Engineering 5,039
Electrical Engineering 4,174
Civil Engineering 3,269
Biomedical Engineering 1,706
General Engineering 1,360
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering 1,357
Chemical Engineering 1,163
Systems Engineering 498
Materials Engineering 488
Other Engineering 476

View All CE Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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