2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. 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 CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2019-2020, 16,932 people earned their degree in computer engineering, making the major the 60th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, computer engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $68,762 and had an average of $25,829 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 3,399 computer engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $73,265 and $23,234 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 2,009 computer engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California” ranking looked at 24 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in computer engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent computer engineering programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the computer engineering program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
Top 24 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Computer Engineering 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 CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California. California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is a large public school situated in San Luis Obispo, California. It awarded 158 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is $21,595 for california bachelor’s degree ce 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 more about Computer Engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. University of California - Los Angeles is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 72 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
UCLA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend UCLA is $14,279 for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read more about Computer Engineering at University of California - Los Angeles
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Jose State University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. This large school is located in San Jose, California, and it awarded 276 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree ce students list, San Jose State has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend San Jose State is $14,928 for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Long Beach. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California. Long Beach, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s CE degrees to 64 students in 2019-2020.
CSULB not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #15 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $9,622 for california bachelor’s degree ce students per year to attend CSULB.
The low student loan default rate of 1.6% 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 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Computer Engineering at California State University - Long Beach
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fresno. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. Fresno State is a large public school situated in Fresno, California. It awarded 24 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Fresno State, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Fresno State is $5,464 for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Computer Engineering at California State University - Fresno
With a ranking of #6, California State University - Northridge did quite well on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. California State University - Northridge is a large school located in Northridge, California that handed out 41 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
CSUN also took the #18 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for CSUN is $8,414 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of California - San Diego did quite well in the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking, coming in at #7. University of California - San Diego is a large school located in La Jolla, California that handed out 124 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
UCSD did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for UCSD is $14,232 for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, 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 94%.
Read more about Computer Engineering at University of California - San Diego
California State Polytechnic University - Pomona did quite well in the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking, coming in at #8. California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is located in Pomona, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 105 bachelors’s CE degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree ce students list, Cal Poly Pomona has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $12,734 for california bachelor’s degree ce students per year to attend California State Polytechnic University - 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
Read full report on Computer Engineering at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona
San Diego State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. SDSU is a large public school situated in San Diego, California. It awarded 81 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
SDSU also made our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #10. It costs about $14,788 for california bachelor’s degree ce students per year to attend SDSU.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Computer Engineering at San Diego State University
California State University - Chico ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. Chico State is a fairly large public school situated in Chico, California. It awarded 7 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
Chico State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #17 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Chico State is $15,017 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 more about Computer Engineering at California State University - Chico
University of California - Irvine ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. Irvine, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s CE degrees to 288 students in 2019-2020.
UC Irvine also took the #7 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $14,783 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. This large school is located in Santa Barbara, California, and it awarded 55 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree ce students list, UCSB has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $15,884 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students per year to attend UCSB.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, 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 91%.
University of California - Davis did quite well in the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking, coming in at #13. University of California - Davis is located in Davis, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 100 bachelors’s CE degrees to qualified students.
UC Davis did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Davis is $14,669 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 1.9% 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 ranking of #14, California State University - Sacramento did quite well on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. California State University - Sacramento is a large public school situated in Sacramento, California. It awarded 42 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
Sac State also took the #16 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $9,979 for california bachelor’s degree ce students per year to attend California State University - Sacramento.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Computer Engineering at California State University - Sacramento
California State University - Fullerton landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. California State University - Fullerton is a large public school situated in Fullerton, California. It awarded 45 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
Cal State Fullerton also made our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #21. The yearly cost to attend Cal State Fullerton is $7,991 for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #16, University of California - Riverside did quite well on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. This large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 49 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCR, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $12,871 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students per year to attend University of California - Riverside.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Computer Engineering at University of California - Riverside
San Francisco State University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. San Francisco State University is located in San Francisco, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 36 bachelors’s CE degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at SFSU, the school also landed the #22 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SFSU is $15,113 for california bachelor’s degree ce students.
Read more about Computer Engineering at San Francisco State University
University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #18 spot on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. Santa Cruz, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s CE degrees to 85 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Santa Cruz, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Santa Cruz is $18,186 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full University of California - Santa Cruz Computer Engineering Report
University of California - Merced came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. Merced, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s CE degrees to 134 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree ce students list, UC Merced has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $13,896 for california bachelor’s degree ce students per year to attend University of California - Merced.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 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.
With a ranking of #20, California State University - Bakersfield did quite well on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California list. Bakersfield, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s CE degrees to 14 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at CSUB, the school also landed the #24 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $5,318 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students per year to attend CSUB.
California Baptist University landed the #21 spot on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. California Baptist University is a fairly large school located in Riverside, California that handed out 5 bachelors’s CE degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cal Baptist, the school also landed the #23 spot in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California Baptist University is $24,707 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
The low student loan default rate of 4.6% 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%.
University of the Pacific landed the #22 spot on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. University of the Pacific is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stockton, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree ce students list, Pacific has also earned the #14 rank in our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Pacific is $28,929 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Santa Clara University landed the #23 spot on the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking. Located in Santa Clara, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 77 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s CE students in 2019-2020.
SCU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $38,327 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students per year to attend Santa Clara University.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. 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%.
Read more about Computer Engineering at Santa Clara University
University of Southern California did quite well in the 2022 Best Value CE Schools for a Bachelor’s in California ranking, coming in at #24. University of Southern California is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 42 bachelors’s CE degrees to qualified students.
USC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Computer Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $29,528 for California Bachelor’s Degree CE students per year to attend USC.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. 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 school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Computer Engineering 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.
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