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2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California

8 Ranked Colleges
322 Degrees Awarded
$23,500 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor's in California

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 5,051 people earned their degree in general architecture, making the major the 111th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, general architecture graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $46,998 and had an average of $41,356 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 370 general architecture graduates with average earnings and debt of $50,619 and $58,932 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 322 general architecture graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California” ranking analyzed 8 colleges that offered a degree in general architecture. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality general architecture programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the general architecture program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank General Architecture Schools

The architecture 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 “Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California”.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. 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.

Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California.

Top 8 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for General Architecture in California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a large school located in San Luis Obispo, California that handed out 31 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also took the #3 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is $21,595 for california bachelor’s degree architecture students.

The low student loan default rate of 1.1% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on General Architecture at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona landed the #2 spot on the list. Cal Poly Pomona is located in Pomona, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 88 bachelors’s architecture degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree architecture students list, Cal Poly Pomona has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $12,734 for California Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students per year to attend Cal Poly Pomona.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about General Architecture at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the #3 spot on the list. UC Berkeley is a large school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 97 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Berkeley is $15,329 for California Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on General Architecture at UC Berkeley

#4

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large public school handed out 22 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s architecture students in 2019-2020.

UCLA did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $14,279 for California Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students per year to attend UCLA.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read full report on General Architecture at UCLA

#5

Woodbury University

Burbank, California

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Woodbury University landed the #5 spot on the list. Woodbury is a private not-for-profit institution located in Burbank, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 13 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree architecture students list, Woodbury has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Woodbury is $23,915 for california bachelor’s degree architecture students.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. 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%.

Read more about General Architecture at Woodbury University

#6

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, California

University of San Francisco landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. This fairly large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 21 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

USFCA also took the #4 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of San Francisco is $36,424 for california bachelor’s degree architecture students.

The low student loan default rate of 2.5% 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%.

Full University of San Francisco General Architecture Report

#7

California College of the Arts

San Francisco, California

California College of the Arts did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking, coming in at #7. California College of the Arts is located in San Francisco, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 26 bachelors’s architecture degrees to qualified students.

California College of the Arts also took the #6 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California College of the Arts is $33,876 for California Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The low student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%.

Read full report on General Architecture at California College of the Arts

#8

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 9 degrees to qualified bachelors’s architecture students in 2019-2020.

USC also made our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #2. It costs about $29,528 for california bachelor’s degree architecture students per year to attend USC.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on General Architecture at University of Southern California

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Notes and References

References

  • 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%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Danichou.

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