2025 Best Urban Studies Master's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region

When it comes to popularity, a master's degree in urban studies sits in the middle of the road, ranking #171 out of 343 majors in the country. So, it might take a little more work to find colleges and universities that offer the degree program.

College Factual reviewed 2 schools in the Far Western US Region to determine which ones were the best for master's degree seekers in the field of urban studies. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 48 master's degrees in urban studies during the 2022-2023 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

• Best Master’s Degree Schools List

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 much a school focuses on urban studies students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other urban studies students want to attend this school to pursue a master's degree.
• 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 much debt urban studies students go into to obtain their master's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized urban studies related body.

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

More Ways to Rank Urban Studies Schools

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 Urban Studies Master's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Urban Studies in the Far Western US Region

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for urban studies students seeking a a master's degree.

Top Far Western US Region Schools for a Master's in Urban Studies

1

University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA

28 Annual Graduates

It is difficult to beat University of Southern California if you wish to pursue a master's degree in urban studies. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in urban studies from University of Southern California

2

University of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA

17 Annual Graduates

$74,045 Median Starting Salary

University of San Francisco is a great choice for students interested in a master's degree in urban studies. Located in the city of San Francisco, USFCA is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.

After graduating, urban studies master's recipients usually make around $74,045 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in urban studies from University of San Francisco

Best Urban Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best urban studies colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
California	253	84
Washington	183	0
Oregon	158	3

View All Rankings >

Rankings in Majors Related to Urban Studies

Urban Studies is one of 13 different types of Social Sciences programs to choose from.

Urban Studies Focus Areas

Major	Annual Graduates
Urban Studies/Affairs	48

Most Popular Majors Related to Urban Studies

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Economics	662
International Relations & National Security	471
Geography & Cartography	183
Sociology	178
Political Science & Government	160
Anthropology	142
General Social Sciences	41
Demography & Population Studies	29
Other Social Sciences	20
Archeology	8

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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 the rest 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).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Andrew Bossi. More about our data sources and methodologies.