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2024 Best General Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in California

8 Colleges in California
209 Bachelor's Degrees
$78,218 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your bachelor's degree in general engineering, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #116 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 8 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for general engineering students pursuing a bachelor's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 209 bachelor's degrees in general engineering during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great General Engineering School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best General Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in California The engineering bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality engineering program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we consider a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a collection of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for general engineering students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Engineering Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best General Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study General Engineering in California

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in general engineering.

Top California Schools for a Bachelor's in Engineering

1
Harvey Mudd College crest
Harvey Mudd College
Claremont, CA
58 Annual Graduates
$81,948 Median Starting Salary
$22,240 Median Student Debt

Harvey Mudd College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in general engineering. Located in the large suburb of Claremont, Harvey Mudd College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the general engineering major at Harvey Mudd College make $3,731 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from Harvey Mudd College

2
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
5 Annual Graduates

Santa Clara University is a great option for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in general engineering. SCU is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Santa Clara.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from Santa Clara University

3
123 Annual Graduates
$74,487 Median Starting Salary
$15,000 Median Student Debt

University of California - Davis is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in general engineering. UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Davis.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the engineering program earn around $74,487 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from University of California - Davis

4
3 Annual Graduates

San Jose State University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in general engineering. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from San Jose State University

5
7 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of San Diego, USD is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from University of San Diego

5
3 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from California State University - Long Beach

6

Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Riverside.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from California Baptist University

7

Located in the large city of Los Angeles, Cal State LA is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from California State University - Los Angeles

8

Located in the city of San Diego, PLNU is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in general engineering from Point Loma Nazarene University

Best General Engineering Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 226 35
Oregon 185 0
Alaska 75 1

View All Rankings >

General Engineering is one of 41 different types of Engineering programs to choose from.

Engineering Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Engineering 208
Pre-Engineering 1

Majors Similar to Engineering

Related Major Annual Graduates
Mechanical Engineering 3,935
Electrical Engineering 2,496
Civil Engineering 2,163
Computer Engineering 2,137
Biomedical Engineering 1,078
Chemical Engineering 872
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering 805
Industrial Engineering 408
Environmental Engineering 258
Materials Engineering 189

Notes and References

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