2025 Best Philosophy Schools in California
19
Colleges in California
1,693
Philosophy Degrees Awarded
$33,575
Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in
philosophy, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #83 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.
College Factual looked at 19 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Philosophy Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,693 degrees in philosophy annually.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Philosophy School
Your choice of philosophy school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Philosophy 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.
Philosophy Rankings by Degree Level
When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Philosophy Schools in California list to help you make the college decision.
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 Philosophy in California
Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the philosophy degree levels they offer.
10 Top California Schools in Philosophy
University of Southern California is a great option for students pursuing a degree in philosophy. 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 roughly 72 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available. Philosophy degree recipients from University of Southern California earn a boost of around $4,805 above the typical income of philosophy majors.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of Southern California
It is difficult to beat University of California - Los Angeles if you want to pursue a degree in philosophy. UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #28 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.
There were about 129 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the philosophy program earn around $30,182 for their early career.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - Los Angeles
Every student who is interested in philosophy has to check out University of California - Berkeley. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.
There were approximately 91 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent data year. Philosophy degree recipients from University of California - Berkeley receive an earnings boost of approximately $2,780 above the typical earnings of philosophy majors.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - Berkeley
University of California - Santa Barbara is a great option for students interested in a degree in philosophy. UCSB is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Santa Barbara. A Best Colleges rank of #47 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UCSB is a great university overall.
There were approximately 115 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UCSB in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, philosophy degree recipients usually earn around $25,303 in the first five years of their career.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - Santa Barbara
UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the 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 about 60 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the philosophy program earn an average of $32,749 in the first couple years of their career.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - Davis
UCR is a fairly large public university located in the city of Riverside. This university ranks 28th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 58 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UCR in the most recent data year. After graduating, philosophy degree recipients typically make about $25,171 in the first five years of their career.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - Riverside
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 approximately 47 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the philosophy program make around $20,922 for their early career.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - Irvine
Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 25th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 36 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the philosophy program state that they receive average early career income of $29,712.
More information about a degree in philosophy from San Diego State University
Located in the large city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #49 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.
There were approximately 38 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, philosophy degree recipients typically earn an average of $24,669 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a degree in philosophy from University of California - San Diego
Located in the city of Orange, Chapman is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #172 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Chapman is a great university overall.
There were about 24 philosophy students who graduated with this degree at Chapman in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in philosophy from Chapman University
