2023 Best Value Colleges for Religious Studies in California (With Aid)
9
Ranked Colleges
420
Degrees Awarded
$19,800
Avg Net Price*
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 9,470 people earned their degree in religious studies, making the major the 90th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, religious studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $34,289 and had an average of $24,431 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 420 religious studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $27,978 and $18,684 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 9 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in religious studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent religious studies programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the religious studies program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
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 Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.
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. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid.
Top 9 Best Value Colleges for Religious Studies in California (With Aid)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Northridge. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Northridge, California, this large public school awarded 12 diplomas to qualified ’s religion students in 2020-2021.
CSUN also made our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #6. It costs about $8,523 for california religion students with aid per year to attend California State University - Northridge.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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%.
Full California State University - Northridge Religious Studies Report
Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Davis landed the #2 spot on the list. UC Davis is a public institution located in Davis, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california religion students with aid list, UC Davis has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UC Davis is $15,768 for California Religion students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Read more about Religious Studies at University of California - Davis
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Santa Barbara. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. University of California - Santa Barbara is a public institution located in Santa Barbara, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 38 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
UCSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” list. It costs about $16,252 for California Religion students with aid per year to attend University of California - Santa Barbara.
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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Religious Studies at UCSB
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Fullerton. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. This large school is located in Fullerton, California, and it awarded 10 ’s religion degrees in 2020-2021.
Cal State Fullerton also took the #7 spot in our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State Fullerton is $8,003 for California Religion students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Fullerton Religious Studies Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Riverside. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. Located in Riverside, California, this large public school awarded 12 diplomas to qualified ’s religion students in 2020-2021.
UCR also made our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $11,822 for California Religion students with aid per year to attend University of California - Riverside.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Religious Studies at UCR
San Francisco State University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #6. SFSU is located in San Francisco, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 ’s religion degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at SFSU, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for SFSU is $14,459 for california religion students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Religious Studies at SFSU
California Baptist University landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Cal Baptist is a private not-for-profit institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 30 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california religion students with aid list, Cal Baptist has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California Baptist University is $26,719 for California Religion students with aid.
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 Religious Studies Report
University of Southern California came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s religion degrees to 8 students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at USC, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for USC is $32,569 for california religion students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Religious Studies at University of Southern California
With a ranking of #9, Chapman University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Religion Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Chapman is a medium-sized school located in Orange, California that handed out 2 ’s religion degrees in 2020-2021.
Chapman also made our “Best Religious Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. It costs about $44,198 for California Religion students with aid per year to attend Chapman.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Chapman University Religious Studies Report
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Notes and References
References
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
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