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2024 Best Education Schools in California

63 Colleges in California
26,792 Education Degrees Awarded
$57,949 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in education is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #4 out of 38 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

College Factual reviewed 63 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of education. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 26,792 degrees in education during the 2020-2021 academic year.

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

Choosing a Great Education School

Best Education Schools in California The education program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Education rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for education schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each 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.

Education Rankings by Degree Level

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

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Education Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Education in California

The schools below may not offer all types of education degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top California Schools in Education

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,019 Education Degrees Awarded
1.1% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in education needs to check out University of Southern California. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #11 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were about 1019 education students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, education degree recipients generally make around $55,473 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in education from University of Southern California

2
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
146 Education Degrees Awarded
$70,559 Median Starting Salary

Stanford University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in education. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #3 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.

There were roughly 146 education students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the education degree program at Stanford University get $12,610 above the average graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in education from Stanford University

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
473 Education Degrees Awarded
$62,822 Median Starting Salary

Loyola Marymount University is a good decision for students pursuing a degree in education. Located in the city of Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #135 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Loyola Marymount is a great university overall.

There were about 473 education students who graduated with this degree at Loyola Marymount in the most recent data year. Education degree recipients from Loyola Marymount University earn a boost of around $4,873 over the typical income of education graduates.

More information about a degree in education from Loyola Marymount University

4
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
140 Education Degrees Awarded
12.1% Growth in Graduates

Santa Clara University is a wonderful option for students pursuing a degree in education. SCU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the 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 about 140 education students who graduated with this degree at SCU in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the education program at Santa Clara University earn $22,954 above the average college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in education from Santa Clara University

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
111 Education Degrees Awarded
15.3% Growth in Graduates

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

There were about 111 education students who graduated with this degree at Claremont Graduate University in the most recent year we have data available. Education degree recipients from Claremont Graduate University earn a boost of about $24,140 above the average earnings of education graduates.

More information about a degree in education from Claremont Graduate University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
265 Education Degrees Awarded
7.9% Growth in Graduates

UCLA is a very large public university located in the city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #26 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were about 265 education students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the education major at University of California - Los Angeles get $14,555 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

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

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
132 Education Degrees Awarded
27.3% Growth in Graduates

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

There were roughly 132 education students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, education degree recipients usually earn an average of $54,702 at the beginning of their careers.

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

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
656 Education Degrees Awarded
0.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the 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 656 education students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the education program state that they receive average early career earnings of $45,688.

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

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
107 Education Degrees Awarded
43.9% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public university with a 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 roughly 107 education students who graduated with this degree at UC Santa Cruz in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the education program state that they receive average early career wages of $53,511.

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

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
195 Education Degrees Awarded
7.7% Growth in Graduates

Fresno Pacific is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Fresno. This university ranks 59th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 195 education students who graduated with this degree at Fresno Pacific in the most recent data year. After graduation, education degree recipients typically earn an average of $59,030 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in education from Fresno Pacific University


 

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Education students in the state of California that almost earned our Best Education Schools in California award.

Rank College Location
11 Saint Mary’s College of California Moraga, CA
12 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
13 National University San Diego, CA
14 University of Redlands Redlands, CA
15 University of California - Berkeley Berkeley, CA

Best Education Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 37 4,495
Oregon 37 2,552
Hawaii 36 830
Nevada 35 1,361
Alaska 33 231

View All Rankings >

Education Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 7,601
General Education 7,597
Special Education 3,154
Educational Administration 2,692
Student Counseling 2,023
Teacher Education Subject Specific 1,094
Curriculum & Instruction 614
Instructional Media Design 490
Other Education 435
Teaching English or French 372

View All Education Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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