2023 Most Focused Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Journalism in California
25
Ranked Colleges
1,124
Degrees Awarded
$32,592
Avg Salary
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 13,552 people earned their degree in journalism, making the major the 69th most popular in the United States. 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. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,124 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,566 and $21,995 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California” ranking analyzed 25 colleges that offered a degree in journalism. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their journalism program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
One Size Does Not Fit All
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 “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California” list to help you make the college decision.
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. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california bachelor’s degree journalism students.
Top 25 Most Focused Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Journalism in California
Out of the 25 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Diego State University landed the #1 spot on the list. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 170 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% 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 San Diego State University Journalism Report
Out of the 25 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Northridge landed the #2 spot on the list. CSUN is a large public school situated in Northridge, California. It awarded 161 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Journalism at California State University - Northridge
Out of the 25 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the #3 spot on the list. Fresno State is a large school located in Fresno, California that handed out 85 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. 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%.
Full California State University - Fresno Journalism Report
Out of the 25 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #4 spot on the list. This large school is located in San Luis Obispo, California, and it awarded 80 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%.
Full California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo Journalism Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Biola University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. Located in La Mirada, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 16 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% 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 Journalism at Biola University
With a ranking of #6, Chapman University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. Located in Orange, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 31 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.1% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Chapman Journalism Report
California State University - Chico ranked #7 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. Located in Chico, California, this fairly large public school awarded 49 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at Chico State
California State University - Long Beach did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #8. Located in Long Beach, California, this large public school handed out 109 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Journalism at California State University - Long Beach
With a ranking of #9, Loyola Marymount University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. This fairly large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 29 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate 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 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%.
Read full report on Journalism at Loyola Marymount
Humboldt State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #10. Located in Arcata, California, this medium-sized public school handed out 17 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
Full Humboldt State University Journalism Report
San Francisco State University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking. San Francisco State University is located in San Francisco, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 61 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full SFSU Journalism Report
Mount Saint Mary’s University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #12. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 5 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Journalism at MSMU
With a ranking of #13, Point Loma Nazarene University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. PLNU is a small school located in San Diego, California that handed out 7 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Journalism at PLNU
With a ranking of #14, San Jose State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. San Jose State is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 52 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full San Jose State Journalism Report
California State University - Sacramento did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #15. Sac State is a large public school situated in Sacramento, California. It awarded 41 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Journalism at California State University - Sacramento
California State University - Dominguez Hills ranked #16 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. Located in Carson, California, this fairly large public school awarded 21 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
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%.
Full CSUDH Journalism Report
University of Southern California came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking. USC is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 79 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergraduate 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 more about Journalism at University of Southern California
California Baptist University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking. Cal Baptist is located in Riverside, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 12 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at California Baptist University
Pepperdine University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #20. This fairly large school is located in Malibu, California, and it awarded 9 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Journalism at Pepperdine University
University of California - Irvine came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking. University of California - Irvine is a large school located in Irvine, California that handed out 32 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. 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%.
Full University of California - Irvine Journalism Report
Academy of Art University ranked #22 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. Academy of Art University is located in San Francisco, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 5.0% 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 Academy of Art University Journalism Report
California State University - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #23. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large public school awarded 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2020-2021.
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%.
Full California State University - Los Angeles Journalism Report
University of La Verne did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California ranking, coming in at #24. University of La Verne is located in La Verne, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at University of La Verne
Pacific Union College ranked #25 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in California list. Pacific Union College is a small school located in Angwin, California that handed out 0 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Journalism at Pacific Union College
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