2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California
14
Ranked Colleges
872
Degrees Awarded
$57,994
Avg Salary
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. 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 Chem Eng Major in California” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
Chemical Engineering is the 70th most popular major in the country with 12,917 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, chemical engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $65,870 and had an average of $23,285 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 1,136 chemical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $58,086 and $17,925 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 872 chemical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,566 and $21,995 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California” ranking, we looked at 14 colleges that offer 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
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california bachelor’s degree chem eng students.
Top 14 Most Focused Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Chemical Engineering in California
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California Institute of Technology. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. Caltech is a private not-for-profit institution located in Pasadena, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 10 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Chemical Engineering at California Institute of Technology
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State Polytechnic University - Pomona. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California. Located in Pomona, California, this large public school awarded 73 degrees to qualified bachelors’s chem eng students in 2020-2021.
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 low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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%.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at Cal Poly Pomona
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 for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California. University of California - Riverside is a large public school situated in Riverside, California. It awarded 74 bachelors’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, 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 undergraduate students.
Full University of California - Riverside Chemical Engineering Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California. UC Berkeley is a large school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 146 bachelors’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.
Read full report on Chemical Engineering at University of California - Berkeley
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Davis. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California. UC Davis is a public institution located in Davis, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 103 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Chemical Engineering at University of California - Davis
University of California - San Diego landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. La Jolla, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s chem eng degrees to 99 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of California - San Diego Chemical Engineering Report
California State University - Long Beach did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking, coming in at #7. This large school is located in Long Beach, California, and it awarded 62 bachelors’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.
Read full report on Chemical Engineering at California State University - Long Beach
University of California - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking, coming in at #8. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 81 bachelors’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at University of California - Los Angeles
University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. UCSB is located in Santa Barbara, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 43 bachelors’s chem eng degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. 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 more about Chemical Engineering at University of California - Santa Barbara
With a ranking of #10, Stanford University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s chem eng degrees to 24 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.5% 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Chemical Engineering at Stanford
With a ranking of #11, California Baptist University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. Cal Baptist is located in Riverside, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 16 bachelors’s chem eng 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 more about Chemical Engineering at California Baptist University
University of California - Irvine did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking, coming in at #12. UC Irvine is a large public school situated in Irvine, California. It awarded 59 bachelors’s chem eng degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, 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 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Chemical Engineering at UC Irvine
San Jose State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California ranking. San Jose State University is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 44 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad 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.
Full San Jose State Chemical Engineering Report
University of Southern California ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Chem Eng Major in California list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 38 bachelors’s chem eng 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%. 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Full USC Chemical Engineering Report
Focus on a Specific Degree Level
Switch to a More General Major
Switch to a Similar Major
Switch to a More Focused Major
Switch to a Different Ranking Method
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.