2023 Most Focused Colleges for Chemical Engineering in California
14
Ranked Colleges
1,120
Degrees Awarded
$35,600
Avg Cost*
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 12,690 people earned their degree in chemical engineering, making the major the 64th most popular in the United States.
Across California, there were 1,120 chemical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California” ranking analyzed 14 colleges that offered a degree in chemical engineering. That schools that top this list have a program in chemical engineering in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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 Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California” list to help you make the college decision.
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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california chem eng students.
Top 14 Most Focused Colleges for Chemical Engineering in California
Out of the 14 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California Institute of Technology landed the #1 spot on the list. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s chem eng degrees to 23 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at California Institute of Technology
Out of the 14 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Stanford University landed the #2 spot on the list. Stanford is a fairly large school located in Stanford, California that handed out 65 ’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Stanford University Chemical Engineering Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Riverside. The school came in at #3 for the Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California. UCR is a public institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 88 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, 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.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at UCR
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Berkeley. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s chem eng degrees to 175 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%.
Full University of California - Berkeley Chemical Engineering Report
Out of the 14 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - San Diego landed the #5 spot on the list. University of California - San Diego is a large public school situated in La Jolla, California. It awarded 130 ’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national 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.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at University of California - San Diego
California State Polytechnic University - Pomona did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking, coming in at #6. California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is a public institution located in Pomona, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 73 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, 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%.
Full Cal Poly Pomona Chemical Engineering Report
University of California - Davis came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. Davis, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s chem eng degrees to 104 students in 2020-2021.
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 school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full UC Davis Chemical Engineering Report
University of California - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking, coming in at #8. UCLA is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 119 ’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at UCLA
University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. University of California - Santa Barbara is a large public school situated in Santa Barbara, California. It awarded 59 ’s chem eng 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full University of California - Santa Barbara Chemical Engineering Report
With a ranking of #10, California State University - Long Beach did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. Long Beach, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s chem eng degrees to 74 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at CSULB
With a ranking of #11, University of California - Irvine did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. UC Irvine is located in Irvine, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 77 ’s chem eng degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, 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%.
Full UC Irvine Chemical Engineering Report
California Baptist University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking, coming in at #12. Located in Riverside, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 16 degrees to qualified ’s chem eng students in 2020-2021.
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%.
Full Cal Baptist Chemical Engineering Report
San Jose State University landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. San Jose State is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 49 ’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.
Read full report on Chemical Engineering at San Jose State
University of Southern California landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. USC is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 68 ’s chem eng degrees to qualified students.
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 undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. 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 Chemical Engineering at USC
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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
- *Avg Salary and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate 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.
Credits
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Mikulova.
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