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2024 Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region

71 Colleges in the Far Western US Region
15,404 Communications Degrees Awarded
$37,160 Avg Early-Career Salary
Communication & Media Studies is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #10 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 71 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 15,404 degrees in communication & media studies during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Communication & Media Studies School

Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region The communications program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Communication & Media Studies rankings. For our Best Overall Communication & Media Studies School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Communication & Media Studies Rankings by Degree Level

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

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region 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 Communication & Media Studies in the Far Western US Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the communications degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

10 Top Far Western US Region Schools in Communications

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
567 Communications Degrees Awarded
$54,939 Median Starting Salary

University of Southern California is a good choice for students interested in a degree in communication & media studies. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #11 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were about 567 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent data year. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from University of Southern California make $17,779 more than the standard communications graduate.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of Southern California

2
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
268 Communications Degrees Awarded
$48,287 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat University of California - Berkeley if you want to pursue a degree in communication & media studies. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public university located in the city of Berkeley. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.

There were about 268 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the communication & media studies major at University of California - Berkeley make $11,127 above the average college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of California - Berkeley

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
300 Communications Degrees Awarded
$38,895 Median Starting Salary

University of California - Davis is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in communication & media studies. Located in the suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #52 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Davis is a great university overall.

There were approximately 300 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the communications program report average early career income of $38,895.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of California - Davis

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
469 Communications Degrees Awarded
$41,054 Median Starting Salary

University of California - Santa Barbara is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in communication & media studies. Located in the suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #45 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCSB is a great university overall.

There were approximately 469 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UCSB in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the communication & media studies program at University of California - Santa Barbara make $3,894 above the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of California - Santa Barbara

5
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
142 Communications Degrees Awarded
14.1% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Santa Clara, SCU is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #50 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SCU is a great university overall.

There were about 142 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at SCU in the most recent year we have data available. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Santa Clara University earn a boost of about $15,880 over the typical income of communication & media studies majors.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Santa Clara University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
271 Communications Degrees Awarded
10.0% Growth in Graduates

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

There were approximately 271 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the communications program report average early career income of $34,173.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of California - San Diego

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
411 Communications Degrees Awarded
$37,823 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #37 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UW Seattle is a great university overall.

There were approximately 411 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the communications program state that they receive average early career income of $37,823.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

8
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
55 Communications Degrees Awarded
7.3% Growth in Graduates

Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Stanford. A Best Colleges rank of #3 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.

There were roughly 55 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent year we have data available. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Stanford University receive an earnings boost of around $15,688 over the typical earnings of communication & media studies graduates.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Stanford University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
343 Communications Degrees Awarded
$42,620 Median Starting Salary

SFSU is a fairly large public university located in the city of San Francisco. This university ranks 35th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 343 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at SFSU in the most recent year we have data available. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from San Francisco State University receive an earnings boost of approximately $5,460 over the average earnings of communication & media studies majors.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from San Francisco State University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
259 Communications Degrees Awarded
4.6% Growth in Graduates

UNLV is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Las Vegas. A Best Colleges rank of #149 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UNLV is a great university overall.

There were roughly 259 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UNLV in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the communications program report average early career income of $35,346.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of Nevada - Las Vegas

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Communication & Media Studies students in the Far Western US Region that almost earned our Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region award.

Rank College Location
11 San Jose State University San Jose, CA
12 University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA
13 San Diego State University San Diego, CA
14 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
15 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
16 Washington State University Pullman, WA
17 Chapman University Orange, CA

Best Communication & Media Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best communication & media studies schools for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
California 330 12,751
Washington 300 1,137
Oregon 266 411
Nevada 192 367
Hawaii 164 265
Alaska 119 11

View All Rankings >

Communication & Media Studies is one of 5 different types of Communication & Journalism programs to choose from.

Communications Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Speech Communication 12,496
Communications 1,687
Communication & Media Studies 919
Other Communication & Media Studies 302

View All Communications Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 2,988
Journalism 2,197
Public Relations & Advertising 1,931
Communication & Journalism (Other) 150
Publishing 31

View All Communications Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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