2023 Best Value Colleges for Journalism (Income $0-$30k) in California
21
Ranked Colleges
1,640
Degrees Awarded
$15,500
Avg Net Price*
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.
Journalism is the 69th most popular major in the country with 13,552 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, journalism graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $32,953 and had an average of $23,734 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 1,640 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,623 and $21,695 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 21 colleges that offer a degree in journalism. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great journalism programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.
To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the journalism program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
More Ways to Rank Journalism Schools
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important 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 Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k
The colleges and universities below are the best for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
Top 21 Best Value Colleges for Journalism (Income $0-$30k) in California
Out of the 21 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Southern California landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 115 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
USC also took the #1 spot in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Southern California is $17,287 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Journalism at University of Southern California
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fresno. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. California State University - Fresno is a large school located in Fresno, California that handed out 85 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Fresno State, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Fresno State is $3,859 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
Read more about Journalism at Fresno State
Out of the 21 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, San Diego State University landed the #3 spot on the list. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s journalism degrees to 170 students in 2020-2021.
SDSU also took the #2 spot in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $7,169 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend San Diego State University.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full San Diego State University Journalism Report
Out of the 21 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #4 spot on the list. Long Beach, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s journalism degrees to 109 students in 2020-2021.
CSULB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. It costs about $6,663 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Long Beach.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full CSULB Journalism Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Irvine. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in Irvine, California, this large public school awarded 32 diplomas to qualified ’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k list, UC Irvine has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC Irvine is $6,540 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, 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 94%.
Full University of California - Irvine Journalism Report
California State University - Sacramento came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. California State University - Sacramento is a large school located in Sacramento, California that handed out 41 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Sac State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Sacramento is $8,163 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Journalism at Sac State
California State University - Northridge came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. CSUN is a public institution located in Northridge, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 161 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
CSUN also made our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list, coming in at #15. It costs about $6,266 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Northridge.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Northridge Journalism Report
California State University - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #8. Cal State LA is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 10 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Cal State LA also made our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list, coming in at #20. It costs about $1,887 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Cal State LA.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at Cal State LA
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. San Luis Obispo, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s journalism degrees to 80 students in 2020-2021.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also took the #3 spot in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is $12,173 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Journalism Report
San Jose State University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. San Jose State is a large school located in San Jose, California that handed out 52 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
San Jose State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State University is $12,158 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Journalism at San Jose State University
California State University - Chico did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #11. Located in Chico, California, this fairly large public school handed out 49 degrees to qualified ’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
Chico State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Chico State is $11,754 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Journalism at Chico State
California State University - Dominguez Hills ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Carson, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s journalism degrees to 21 students in 2020-2021.
CSUDH did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #19 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. It costs about $2,657 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CSUDH.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at California State University - Dominguez Hills
San Francisco State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. San Francisco State University is a public institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 61 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
SFSU also made our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list, coming in at #12. The yearly cost to attend San Francisco State University is $10,705 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at SFSU
Humboldt State University landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Arcata, California, this medium-sized public school handed out 17 diplomas to qualified ’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
Humboldt State University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #21 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. It costs about $11,473 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Humboldt State University.
Read full report on Journalism at Humboldt State University
California Baptist University came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. California Baptist University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Cal Baptist also made our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list, coming in at #17. It costs about $21,769 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Cal Baptist.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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%.
Read more about Journalism at Cal Baptist
With a ranking of #17, Biola University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Biola University is located in La Mirada, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 16 ’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
Biola not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #14 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Biola is $27,024 for california journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Biola Journalism Report
With a ranking of #18, Loyola Marymount University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s journalism degrees to 29 students in 2020-2021.
Loyola Marymount did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Journalism Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Loyola Marymount University is $32,730 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read more about Journalism at Loyola Marymount
Pepperdine University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Pepperdine is a fairly large school located in Malibu, California that handed out 9 ’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Pepperdine, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $36,264 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Pepperdine University.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Journalism at Pepperdine University
Chapman University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Journalism Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #20. Chapman University is located in Orange, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 31 ’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Chapman, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Journalism Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Chapman is $34,946 for California Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Chapman Journalism Report
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