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2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k

16 Ranked Colleges
668 Degrees Awarded
$16,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Writing Studies is the 81st most popular major in the country with 12,529 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, writing studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $32,208 and had an average of $24,626 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 668 writing studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $29,467 and $17,394 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 16 colleges that offered a degree in writing studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent writing studies programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

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

More Ways to Rank Writing Studies Schools

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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 16 Best Value Colleges for Writing Studies (Income $0-$30k) in California

1

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in Berkeley, California, this large public school awarded 60 degrees to qualified ’s writing students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california writing students whose families make $0-$30k list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC Berkeley is $8,450 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of California - Berkeley Writing Studies Report

2

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fresno. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Fresno State is a large school located in Fresno, California that handed out 8 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

Fresno State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Fresno State is $3,859 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Fresno Writing Studies Report

3
SDSU crest
San Diego State University
San Diego, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend San Diego State University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school handed out 29 degrees to qualified ’s writing students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SDSU, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $7,169 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend San Diego State University.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Read more about Writing Studies at San Diego State University

4

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Riverside. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k. This large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 102 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

UCR also made our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. It costs about $6,810 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UCR.

With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Writing Studies at University of California - Riverside

5
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Southern California. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 55 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

USC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend USC is $17,287 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full USC Writing Studies Report

6

California State University - San Bernardino ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. CSUSB is located in San Bernardino, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 37 ’s writing degrees to qualified students.

CSUSB also made our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #17. It costs about $5,985 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CSUSB.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full CSUSB Writing Studies Report

7

California State University - Long Beach came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. California State University - Long Beach is a public institution located in Long Beach, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 14 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california writing students whose families make $0-$30k list, CSULB has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $6,663 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Long Beach.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Long Beach Writing Studies Report

8

With a ranking of #8, University of California - Irvine did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of California - Irvine is a large school located in Irvine, California that handed out 11 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california writing students whose families make $0-$30k list, UC Irvine has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $6,540 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Writing Studies at University of California - Irvine

9
SFSU crest
San Francisco State University
San Francisco, California

San Francisco State University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 28 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

SFSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Francisco State University is $10,705 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full San Francisco State University Writing Studies Report

10
Mills crest
Mills College
Oakland, California

With a ranking of #10, Mills College did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Oakland, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s writing degrees to 11 students in 2020-2021.

Mills also made our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #13. The yearly cost to attend Mills is $17,236 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full Mills Writing Studies Report

11
University of Redlands crest
University of Redlands
Redlands, California

University of Redlands came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Redlands, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s writing degrees to 10 students in 2020-2021.

University of Redlands not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #15 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Redlands is $20,409 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Writing Studies at University of Redlands

12
Cal Baptist crest
California Baptist University
Riverside, California

With a ranking of #12, California Baptist University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 10 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

Cal Baptist did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #19 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Cal Baptist is $21,769 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Cal Baptist Writing Studies Report

13
USFCA crest
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, California

University of San Francisco ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of San Francisco is a fairly large school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 29 ’s writing degrees in 2020-2021.

USFCA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for USFCA is $32,023 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read full report on Writing Studies at University of San Francisco

14

Saint Mary’s College of California ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Moraga, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s writing degrees to 16 students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SMC, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for SMC is $28,783 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read more about Writing Studies at Saint Mary’s College of California

15
California College of the Arts crest
California College of the Arts
San Francisco, California

California College of the Arts did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #15. Located in San Francisco, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 16 diplomas to qualified ’s writing students in 2020-2021.

California College of the Arts did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend California College of the Arts is $29,530 for california writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full California College of the Arts Writing Studies Report

16
Chapman crest
Chapman University
Orange, California

With a ranking of #16, Chapman University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Writing Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Chapman is a private not-for-profit institution located in Orange, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 58 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Chapman, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Writing Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Chapman is $34,946 for California Writing students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Writing Studies at Chapman

Notes and References

References

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