2026 Best Value Pharmacology Schools in California

[Pharmacology](/majors/biological-biomedical-sciences/pharmacology-and-toxicology/pharmacology/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The schools below stand out for delivering a strong pharmacology education at a price that pays off.
College Factual analyzed 3 schools to build this 2026 ranking of the best value pharmacology schools.
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2026 Best Value Pharmacology Schools in California
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in pharmacology, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value Pharmacology Schools
Leading the list is University Of California Irvine, our #1 best value for pharmacology in California. University Of California Irvine is a very large public school located in the city of Irvine. Students from in state pay about $14,752 in tuition and fees, while out-of-state students pay about $46,640. Students borrow a median of $16,539 to complete the pharmacology program here. Soon after graduation, pharmacology degree recipients from University Of California Irvine generally make around $50,958. That is a strong return on a $16,539 median debt. Roughly 29% of applicants are accepted.
Students looking for strong value in pharmacology will find it at University Of California Santa Barbara, which ranked #2. Set in the suburb of Santa Barbara, University Of California Santa Barbara is a very large public institution. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $15,444, while out-of-state students pay about $47,332. Pharmacology graduates carry a median of $14,500 in student loans. Early-career pharmacology graduates make about $39,421. That is a strong return on a $14,500 median debt. University Of California Santa Barbara admits about 33% of applicants.
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Notes and References
This list is compiled by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 3 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 2 ranked schools only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.