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2024 Best General Psychology Schools in California

77 Colleges in California
30,073 Psychology Degrees Awarded
General Psychology is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #4 most popular major in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 77 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best General Psychology Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 30,073 degrees in general psychology during the 2021-2022 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great General Psychology School

Best General Psychology Schools in California The psychology program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for General Psychology rankings. For our Best Overall General Psychology School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

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.

General Psychology Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Psychology
Bachelor's Degrees in Psychology
Master's Degrees in Psychology
Doctor's Degrees in Psychology

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best General Psychology Schools in California ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for General Psychology in California

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the psychology degrees they offer, see the list below. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

11 Top California Schools in Psychology

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In CA
720 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Every student who is interested in general psychology needs to look into University of California - Los Angeles. UCLA is a very large public university located in the large city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #26 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were approximately 720 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from University of California - Los Angeles

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
52nd Most Popular In CA
198 Psychology Degrees Awarded

University of Southern California is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in general psychology. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #11 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were approximately 198 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from University of Southern California

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
20th Most Popular In CA
391 Psychology Degrees Awarded

University of California - Irvine is a good option for students interested in a degree in general psychology. Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #61 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UC Irvine is a great university overall.

There were roughly 391 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general psychology from University of California - Irvine

4
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
98th Most Popular In CA
122 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Santa Clara University is a wonderful decision for students interested in a degree in general psychology. SCU is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Santa Clara. A Best Colleges rank of #50 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SCU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 122 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at SCU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from Santa Clara University

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
95th Most Popular In CA
133 Psychology Degrees Awarded

The Chicago School Los Angeles Campus is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.

There were approximately 133 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at The Chicago School Los Angeles Campus in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
40th Most Popular In CA
320 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #38 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.

There were roughly 320 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from University of California - San Diego

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
127th Most Popular In CA

Claremont Graduate University is a small private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Claremont. This university ranks 27th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 20 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at Claremont Graduate University in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from Claremont Graduate University

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In CA
446 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #102 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Santa Cruz is a great university overall.

There were about 446 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at UC Santa Cruz in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general psychology from University of California - Santa Cruz

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In CA
597 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #161 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means San Jose State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 597 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at San Jose State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general psychology from San Jose State University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In CA
724 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #141 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SDSU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 724 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general psychology from San Diego State University

11
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In CA
565 Psychology Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 28th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 565 general psychology students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general psychology from California State University - Long Beach


 

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best General Psychology Schools in California award.

RankCollegeLocation
12Pepperdine UniversityMalibu, CA
13University of San DiegoSan Diego, CA
14Palo Alto UniversityPalo Alto, CA
15California State University - SacramentoSacramento, CA
16Loma Linda UniversityLoma Linda, CA
17University of San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA
18California State University - FullertonFullerton, CA
19University of California - DavisDavis, CA

Best General Psychology Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best General Psychology Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Washington8311,737
Oregon5871,632
Nevada354908
Hawaii267389
Alaska167109

View All Rankings >

General Psychology is one of 0 different types of General Psychology programs to choose from.

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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