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2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for General Engineering (Income $0-$30k) in California

11 Ranked Colleges
241 Degrees Awarded
$25,000 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master's in California For Those Making $0-$30k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

General Engineering is the 78th most popular major in the country with 11,925 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, general engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $66,152 and had an average of $20,077 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 1,382 general engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $78,483 and $12,706 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 241 general engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $60,281 and $50,119 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in general engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent general 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 general 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.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for california master’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 11 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for General Engineering (Income $0-$30k) in California

#1

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 44 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Los Angeles are $28,131, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about General Engineering at University of California - Los Angeles

#1 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k. UC Berkeley is a large public school situated in Berkeley, California. It awarded 8 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley also took the #1 spot in our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Berkeley are $29,347, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full University of California - Berkeley General Engineering Report

#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Irvine. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Irvine, California, this large public school awarded 10 degrees to qualified masters’s engineering students in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Irvine are $28,456, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on General Engineering at University of California - Irvine

#8 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the #4 spot on the list. California State University - Fresno is a large public school situated in Fresno, California. It awarded 22 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Fresno State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at California State University - Fresno are $17,581, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on General Engineering at Fresno State

#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Riverside. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in Riverside, California, this large public school awarded 50 diplomas to qualified masters’s engineering students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCR, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Riverside are $28,686, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about General Engineering at University of California - Riverside

California State University - Long Beach ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. CSULB is a large school located in Long Beach, California that handed out 3 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at CSULB, the school also landed the #0 spot in our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at California State University - Long Beach are $17,784, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full California State University - Long Beach General Engineering Report

#7

San Jose State University

San Jose, California

San Jose State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. San Jose State is a large school located in San Jose, California that handed out 26 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at San Jose State, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at San Jose State are $18,790.

Read full report on General Engineering at San Jose State University

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #8. San Luis Obispo, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s engineering degrees to 16 students in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo are $21,009.

Read more about General Engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

#9 in overall quality

California State Polytechnic University - Pomona ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is a public institution located in Pomona, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly Pomona also took the #9 spot in our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona are $18,377.

Read more about General Engineering at Cal Poly Pomona

#10

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California
#10 in overall quality

San Francisco State University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 29 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

SFSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at SFSU are $17,944.

Full SFSU General Engineering Report

#11

University of the Pacific

Stockton, California

University of the Pacific landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Stockton, California, and it awarded 29 masters’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california master’s degree engineering students whose families make $0-$30k list, Pacific has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best General Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Pacific are $49,374, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on General Engineering at University of the Pacific

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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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Rémi Kaupp.

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