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2025 Best History Master's Degree Schools in California

8 Colleges in California
239 Master's Degrees
$40,928 Avg Early-Career Salary
a master's degree in history is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #51 out of 343 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 8 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best History Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 239 master's degrees in history to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great History School for Your Master's Degree

Best History Master's Degree Schools in California Your choice of history for getting your master's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality history program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for history students working on their master's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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

The history 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 History Master's Degree Schools in California.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study History in California

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in history.

Top California Schools for a Master's in History

1
13 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a master's degree in history needs to check out University of California - Irvine. UC Irvine is a very large public university located in the city of Irvine.More information about a master’s in history from University of California - Irvine

2
13 Annual Graduates

It is difficult to beat San Diego State University if you wish to pursue a master's degree in history. SDSU is a fairly large public university located in the city of San Diego.More information about a master’s in history from San Diego State University

3
13 Annual Graduates

California State University - Long Beach is a great choice for individuals pursuing a master's degree in history. CSULB is a very large public university located in the city of Long Beach.More information about a master’s in history from California State University - Long Beach

4

Any student who is interested in a master's degree in history has to check out California State University - Sacramento. Located in the city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Soon after graduation, history master's recipients generally make about $33,736 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in history from California State University - Sacramento

5

Located in the large suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public university with a very large student population.

After graduation, history master's recipients typically earn about $36,905 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in history from California State University - Fullerton

6
21 Annual Graduates

SFSU is a fairly large public university located in the city of San Francisco.More information about a master’s in history from San Francisco State University

7
21 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Northridge, CSUN is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in history from California State University - Northridge

8

Cal State LA is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Los Angeles.

Master's recipients from the history major at California State University - Los Angeles get $11,216 more than the typical college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a master’s in history from California State University - Los Angeles

Best History Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 183 25
Oregon 158 14
Nevada 105 10
Hawaii 85 3

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One of 0 majors within the History area of study, History has other similar majors worth exploring.

History Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General History 235
Public/Applied History 4

Notes and References

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