When pursuing a degree in today's world, there are many different options to choose from. At College Factual, we're committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our Top California Colleges ranking.
Our analysis looked at 170 schools in California to determine which ones were the best in terms of overall quality. Our ranking methodology focuses on over 20 different objective factors - such as graduation rate, post graduate earnings, and a school's average expenditure per student - to make this determination.
Since one ranking on its own is not enough to give you a complete understanding of your educational options, you can refine this list by location and field of study. We've also developed a number of other tools and rankings based on other factors. These other rankings highlight colleges that excel in other factors such as value or diversity as well as schools that excel in serving different groups of students such as veterans or returnings adults.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering!
Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for overall quality in California in this year’s ranking. Located in Stanford, California, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 4,821 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a student-to-faculty rate of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Stanford go into careers with an average salary of $97,798 during the early years of their career.
Out of the 170 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Claremont McKenna College landed the #2 spot on the list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Claremont, California, and it awarded 441 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school boasts an average 4-year graduation rate of 85%, which is excellent when compared to the national rate of 33%. Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $86,571 during the early years of their career..
A rank of #3 on our Best Colleges in California list means University of California - Berkeley is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree. UC Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 14,685 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. During the early years of their career, graduates from UC Berkeley make an average of $80,364 a year.
A rank of #4 on our Best Colleges in California list means University of Southern California is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in Los Angeles, California, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 17,749 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
With a student-to-faculty rate of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from USC is $83,426 during the early years of their career.
A rank of #5 on our Best Colleges in California list means California Institute of Technology is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in Pasadena, California, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 527 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Caltech make an average of $112,166 per year during the early years of their career.
University of California - Los Angeles landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking. University of California - Los Angeles is a large public school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 14,587 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1% Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $73,744 during the early years of their career..
Harvey Mudd College did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking, coming in at #7. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Claremont, California, and it awarded 197 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. During the early years of their career, graduates from Harvey Mudd College make an average of $108,988 a year.
Pomona College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in California ranking. Located in Claremont, California, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 395 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Bachelor’s degree students at the school tend to finish their degree on-time. The 4-year graduation rate is 89%, which is impressive compared to the national rate of 33%. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Pomona make an average of $69,149 per year during the early years of their career.
University of California - San Diego did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking, coming in at #9. This large public school is located in La Jolla, California, and it awarded 11,974 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from UCSD make an average of $74,771 per year during the early years of their career.
University of California - Santa Barbara came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in California ranking. Located in Santa Barbara, California, the large public school handed out 7,875 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from UCSB is $66,491 during the early years of their career.
University of California - Davis did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking, coming in at #11. UC Davis is a large public school situated in Davis, California. It awarded 11,996 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low student loan default rate of 1.5% 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% Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from UC Davis go into careers with an average salary of $69,766 during the early years of their career.
Santa Clara University did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking, coming in at #12. This medium-sized private not-for-profit school is located in Santa Clara, California, and it awarded 2,849 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from SCU go into careers with an average salary of $93,291 during the early years of their career.
Fielding Graduate University landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking.Santa Barbara, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 356 students in 2020-2021.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%
University of California - Irvine ranked #14 on this year’s Best Colleges in California list. Located in Irvine, California, the large public school handed out 12,345 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. During the early years of their career, graduates from UC Irvine make an average of $71,961 a year.
Keck Graduate Institute ranked #15 on this year’s Best Colleges in California list. Keck Graduate Institute is a small private not-for-profit school located in Claremont, California that handed out 337 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #16, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges in California list. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a large public school situated in San Luis Obispo, California. It awarded 5,951 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo make an average of $80,643 per year during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #17, University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges in California list. This fairly large public school is located in Santa Cruz, California, and it awarded 6,014 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from UC Santa Cruz is $58,112 during the early years of their career.
Pepperdine University landed the #19 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking. Pepperdine is located in Malibu, California and has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3,240 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergradutates.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Pepperdine is $72,035 during the early years of their career.
University of San Francisco came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in California ranking. Located in San Francisco, California, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 3,524 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1% The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from USFCA is $78,031 during the early years of their career.
Loyola Marymount University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 2,979 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school boasts an average 4-year graduation rate of 76%, which is excellent when compared to the national rate of 33%. During the early years of their career, graduates from Loyola Marymount make an average of $68,701 a year.
Academy of Art University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Colleges in California list. Academy of Art University is a medium-sized private for-profit school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 1,729 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Academy of Art University go into careers with an average salary of $40,185 during the early years of their career.
Foothill College did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking, coming in at #23.Los Altos Hills, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 2,354 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 100%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Foothill College go into careers with an average salary of $58,157 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #24, San Diego State University did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges in California list. This large public school is located in San Diego, California, and it awarded 10,590 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from SDSU make an average of $59,027 per year during the early years of their career.
University of San Diego did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges in California ranking, coming in at #25.San Diego, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 3,195 students in 2020-2021.
The low student loan default rate of 1.9% 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% Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $74,816 during the early years of their career..
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%.
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