2025 Best Engineering Schools in California
30
Colleges in California
24,454
Engineering Degrees Awarded
$76,684
Avg Early-Career Salary
Engineering is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #7 most popular degree program in the country. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 30 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for engineering students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 24,454 degrees in engineering annually.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Engineering School
The engineering program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Engineering rankings. For our Best Overall Engineering School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.
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 Engineering Degree Level
The engineering school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Engineering Schools in California.
You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to 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.
More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.
Best Schools for Engineering in California
If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the engineering degrees they offer, see the list below.
10 Top California Schools in Engineering
Stanford University is a good decision for students interested in a degree in engineering. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #10 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.
There were approximately 1075 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the engineering degree program at Stanford University make $23,664 above the standard college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
More information about a degree in engineering from Stanford University
It's hard to beat University of California - Berkeley if you wish to pursue a degree in engineering. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.
There were approximately 2451 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent data year. Those engineering students who get their degree from University of California - Berkeley earn $27,735 more than the average engineering student.
More information about a degree in engineering from University of California - Berkeley
Santa Clara University is a wonderful choice for students interested in a degree in engineering. SCU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Santa Clara. A Best Colleges rank of #53 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means SCU is a great university overall.
There were approximately 394 engineering students who graduated with this degree at SCU in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the engineering program at Santa Clara University get $28,402 more than the typical graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
More information about a degree in engineering from Santa Clara University
Every student pursuing a degree in engineering needs to check out University of Southern California. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #13 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means USC is a great university overall.
There were about 1471 engineering students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent data year. Engineering degree recipients from University of Southern California get an earnings boost of around $19,056 above the average income of engineering graduates.
More information about a degree in engineering from University of Southern California
Located in the large suburb of Claremont, Harvey Mudd College is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #36 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Harvey Mudd College is a great college overall.
There were roughly 51 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Harvey Mudd College in the most recent data year. Engineering degree recipients from Harvey Mudd College earn a boost of around $15,807 over the average income of engineering majors.
More information about a degree in engineering from Harvey Mudd College
UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #28 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.
There were roughly 1405 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent year we have data available. Engineering degree recipients from University of California - Los Angeles get an earnings boost of about $14,558 over the average income of engineering graduates.
More information about a degree in engineering from University of California - Los Angeles
Located in the city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #49 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.
There were about 1717 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the engineering program earn an average of $77,835 for their early career.
More information about a degree in engineering from University of California - San Diego
UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Davis. A Best Colleges rank of #55 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UC Davis is a great university overall.
There were roughly 1138 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the engineering program report average early career earnings of $77,210.
More information about a degree in engineering from University of California - Davis
Located in the large 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 approximately 1505 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the engineering program state that they receive average early career income of $71,247.
More information about a degree in engineering from University of California - Irvine
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo. A Best Colleges rank of #165 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a great university overall.
There were about 1336 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the engineering major at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo earn $10,790 more than the standard college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.
More information about a degree in engineering from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo
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