by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 673 people earned their degree in ethnic studies, making the major the 523rd most popular in the United States.
This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major” ranking analyzed 84 colleges that offered a degree in ethnic studies. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their ethnic studies program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. 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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for ethnic studies students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College is located in Perkinston, Mississippi and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 152 ’s ethnic studies degrees to qualified students.
Read more about Ethnic Studies at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend St Olaf College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Northfield, Minnesota is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s ethnic studies degrees to 18 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, 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 91%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Mills College. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Mills College is a small school located in Oakland, California that handed out 5 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 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 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 84 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Colorado College landed the #4 spot on the list. This small school is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and it awarded 7 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, 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. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 84 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #5 spot on the list. University of California - Santa Cruz is located in Santa Cruz, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 48 ’s ethnic studies degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, 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 85%.
Los Angeles Mission College ranked #6 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Los Angeles Mission College is a public institution located in Sylmar, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 16 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
San Diego City College landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. San Diego, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s ethnic studies degrees to 10 students in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #8, Laney College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Oakland, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s ethnic studies degrees to 7 students in 2020-2021.
Santa Clara University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking, coming in at #9. Santa Clara University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Santa Clara, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 19 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Contra Costa College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking, coming in at #10. CCC is located in San Pablo, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 9 ’s ethnic studies degrees to qualified students.
University of California - Merced came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. Located in Merced, California, this medium-sized public school awarded 11 degrees to qualified ’s ethnic studies students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national 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 University of California - Merced Ethnic Studies Report
With a ranking of #12, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Located in Berkeley, California, this large public school handed out 73 diplomas to qualified ’s ethnic studies students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Saint Mary’s College of California came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. Saint Mary’s College of California is a small school located in Moraga, California that handed out 6 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate 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 undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Saint Mary’s College of California Ethnic Studies Report
With a ranking of #14, San Diego Mesa College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. San Diego, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s ethnic studies degrees to 9 students in 2020-2021.
College of San Mateo landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. College of San Mateo is a medium-sized public school situated in San Mateo, California. It awarded 5 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
University of Oregon ranked #16 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. University of Oregon is a public institution located in Eugene, Oregon. The school has a large population, and it awarded 25 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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%.
Texas Christian University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. Texas Christian University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Fort Worth, Texas. It awarded 10 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.
With a ranking of #18, Reed College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Reed College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Portland, Oregon. It awarded 1 ’s ethnic studies degrees 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 impressive undergraduate 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.
Brown University landed the #19 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. Brown University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Providence, Rhode Island. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Albion College ranked #20 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Albion is a small school located in Albion, Michigan that handed out 1 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
University of San Diego landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. University of San Diego is a medium-sized school located in San Diego, California that handed out 8 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad 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%.
Read full report on Ethnic Studies at University of San Diego
With a ranking of #22, Colorado State University - Fort Collins did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. This large school is located in Fort Collins, Colorado, and it awarded 19 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Ethnic Studies at Colorado State University - Fort Collins
University of Colorado Boulder ranked #23 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. Boulder, Colorado is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s ethnic studies degrees to 21 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%.
Fresno City College came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major ranking. This large school is located in Fresno, California, and it awarded 7 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #25, Woodland Community College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Ethnic Studies Major list. This small school is located in Woodland, California, and it awarded 1 ’s ethnic studies degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Ethnic Studies at Woodland Community College
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
