2025 Best Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology Master's Degree Schools in California
If you pursue a master's degree in
clinical, counseling & applied psychology, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #7 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.
In 2025, College Factual analyzed 40 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 5,163 master's degrees in clinical, counseling & applied psychology during the 2021-2022 academic year.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Choosing a Great Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology School for Your Master's Degree
The clinical psychology master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
A Great Overall School
The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we include a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a combination of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
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
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
- Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to clinical, counseling & applied psychology students as compared to other majors.
- Major Demand - The number of clinical, counseling & applied psychology students who choose to seek a master's degree at the school.
- Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
- Student Debt - How easy is it for clinical, counseling & applied psychology to pay back their student loans after receiving their master's degree.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized clinical, counseling & applied psychology related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for clinical, counseling & applied psychology students working on their master's degree.
One Size Does Not Fit All
The clinical psychology 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 Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology Master's Degree Schools in California.
Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology in California
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in clinical, counseling & applied psychology.
10 Top California Schools for a Master's in Clinical Psychology
University of Southern California is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a master's degree in clinical, counseling & applied psychology. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology master's degree recipients from University of Southern California receive an earnings boost of approximately $11,940 above the typical income of clinical, counseling & applied psychology majors.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from University of Southern California
It's difficult to beat Santa Clara University if you wish to pursue a master's degree in clinical, counseling & applied psychology. SCU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Santa Clara.
Those clinical, counseling & applied psychology students who get their master's degree from Santa Clara University make $5,984 more than the standard clinical psychology student.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from Santa Clara University
Any student who is interested in a master's degree in clinical, counseling & applied psychology needs to take a look at Pepperdine University. Pepperdine is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Malibu.
Students who graduate with their master's from the clinical psychology program report average early career income of $49,456.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from Pepperdine University
It is difficult to beat University of San Francisco if you want to pursue a master's degree in clinical, counseling & applied psychology. Located in the large city of San Francisco, USFCA is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology master's degree recipients from University of San Francisco earn a boost of about $5,801 over the average earnings of clinical, counseling & applied psychology graduates.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from University of San Francisco
National University is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of San Diego.
Master's graduates who receive their degree from the clinical psychology program make about $57,834 in the first couple years of working.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from National University
Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from San Diego State University
Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Riverside.
Master's graduates who receive their degree from the clinical psychology program earn an average of $55,299 for their early career.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from California Baptist University
Located in the medium-sized suburb of Seaside, CSUMB is a public university with a medium-sized student population.
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology master's degree recipients from California State University - Monterey Bay get an earnings boost of approximately $24,455 over the average earnings of clinical, counseling & applied psychology majors.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from California State University - Monterey Bay
Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a very large student population.
Master's recipients from the clinical, counseling & applied psychology program at California State University - Long Beach get $21,443 more than the typical college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from California State University - Long Beach
Located in the large suburb of Azusa, Azusa Pacific is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a master’s in clinical, counseling & applied psychology from Azusa Pacific University
