2025 Best Software Engineering Schools in California
5
Colleges in California
764
Computer Software Engineering Degrees Awarded
If you plan on majoring in
software engineering, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #167 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.
In 2025, College Factual analyzed 5 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Software Engineering Schools in California ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 764 degrees in software engineering to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Software Engineering School
Your choice of software engineering school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Software Engineering School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
Pick Your Software Engineering Degree Level
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Software Engineering Schools in California ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique 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.
If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.
Best Schools for Software Engineering in California
The schools below may not offer all types of computer software engineering degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.
Top California Schools in Computer Software Engineering
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
2nd
Most Popular In CA
114
Computer Software Engineering Degrees Awarded
It is difficult to beat University of California - Irvine if you wish to pursue a degree in software engineering. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #73 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UC Irvine is a great university overall.
There were roughly 114 software engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in software engineering from University of California - Irvine
Bachelor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
3rd
Most Popular In CA
63
Computer Software Engineering Degrees Awarded
It is hard to beat California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo if you wish to pursue a degree in software engineering. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo. 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 63 software engineering students who graduated with this degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in software engineering from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo
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
Master's Degree
Highest Degree Type
10th
Most Popular In CA
California State University - Northridge is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in software engineering. CSUN is a very large public university located in the large city of Northridge. This university ranks 48th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were approximately 3 software engineering students who graduated with this degree at CSUN in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in software engineering from California State University - Northridge
Master's Degree
Highest Degree Type
4th
Most Popular In CA
69
Computer Software Engineering Degrees Awarded
California State University - Fullerton is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in software engineering. Cal State Fullerton is a very large public university located in the large suburb of Fullerton. This university ranks 41st out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were about 69 software engineering students who graduated with this degree at Cal State Fullerton in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in software engineering from California State University - Fullerton
Master's Degree
Highest Degree Type
6th
Most Popular In CA
Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Riverside. This university ranks 66th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were approximately 15 software engineering students who graduated with this degree at Cal Baptist in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in software engineering from California Baptist University
