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2024 Best General Family & Consumer Sciences Schools

55 Colleges in the United States
2,906 Consumer Science Degrees Awarded
$30,445 Avg Early-Career Salary
General Family & Consumer Sciences is about average in terms of popularity for degree programs. That is, it ranks #168 out of the 395 majors across the country that we analyze each year. So, you may have to do some digging around to find quality schools that offer the degree program. This list can help with that.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 55 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for general family & consumer sciences students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 2,906 degrees in general family & consumer sciences during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great General Family & Consumer Sciences School

Best General Family & Consumer Sciences Schools The consumer science program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for General Family & Consumer Sciences rankings. For our Best Overall General Family & Consumer Sciences School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your General Family & Consumer Sciences Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Consumer Science
Bachelor's Degrees in Consumer Science
Master's Degrees in Consumer Science
Doctor's Degrees in Consumer Science

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best General Family & Consumer Sciences Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for General Family & Consumer Sciences in the United States

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the consumer science degree levels they offer.

10 Top Schools in Consumer Science

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In WI
32 Consumer Science Degrees Awarded

University of Wisconsin - Madison is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in general family & consumer sciences. Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.

There were roughly 32 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from University of Wisconsin - Madison

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$38,447 Median Starting Salary
$24,110 Median Student Debt

It is difficult to beat Iowa State University if you want to pursue a degree in general family & consumer sciences. Located in the city of Ames, Iowa State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #75 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Iowa State is a great university overall.

There were about 30 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at Iowa State in the most recent data year. Those general family & consumer sciences students who get their degree from Iowa State University make $8,002 more than the standard consumer science grad.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from Iowa State University

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
445 Consumer Science Degrees Awarded
$29,311 Median Starting Salary

California State University - Long Beach is a good decision for students interested in a degree in general family & consumer sciences. CSULB is a very large public university located in the city of Long Beach. A Best Colleges rank of #186 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means CSULB is a great university overall.

There were about 445 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, consumer science degree recipients typically earn an average of $29,311 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from California State University - Long Beach

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
221 Consumer Science Degrees Awarded
$39,645 Median Starting Salary

The University of Alabama is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in general family & consumer sciences. Located in the small city of Tuscaloosa, UA is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #139 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UA is a great university overall.

There were approximately 221 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at UA in the most recent year we have data available. General Family & Consumer Sciences degree recipients from The University of Alabama get an earnings boost of around $9,199 over the average earnings of general family & consumer sciences majors.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from The University of Alabama

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$49,785 Median Starting Salary

Located in the town of Ellensburg, CWU is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 7th out of 51 colleges for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were roughly 15 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at CWU in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the general family & consumer sciences major at Central Washington University get $19,340 more than the typical graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from Central Washington University

6

K -State is a fairly large public university located in the city of Manhattan. A Best Colleges rank of #225 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means K -State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 25 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at K -State in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the general family & consumer sciences program at Kansas State University earn $6,452 more than the typical college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from Kansas State University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
192 Consumer Science Degrees Awarded
1.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Northridge, CSUN is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 49th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 192 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at CSUN in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the general family & consumer sciences degree program at California State University - Northridge make $7,951 above the average college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from California State University - Northridge

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In MO

Mizzou is a fairly large public university located in the city of Columbia. A Best Colleges rank of #124 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Mizzou is a great university overall.

There were roughly 11 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at Mizzou in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from University of Missouri - Columbia

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
176 Consumer Science Degrees Awarded
$28,081 Median Starting Salary

MSU Bozeman is a fairly large public university located in the town of Bozeman. This university ranks 1st out of 11 schools for overall quality in the state of Montana.

There were roughly 176 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at MSU Bozeman in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the consumer science program report average early career earnings of $28,081.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from Montana State University

10
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In OK

OSU is a very large public university located in the town of Stillwater. This university ranks 2nd out of 32 schools for overall quality in the state of Oklahoma.

There were about 4 general family & consumer sciences students who graduated with this degree at OSU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general family & consumer sciences from Oklahoma State University - Main Campus

General Family & Consumer Sciences by Region

View the Best General Family & Consumer Sciences Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

One of 8 majors within the Family, Consumer & Human Sciences area of study, General Family & Consumer Sciences has other similar majors worth exploring.

Consumer Science Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Family & Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General 2,906

View All Consumer Science Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Human Development & Family Studies 42,112
Food, Nutrition & Related Services 4,858
Textile & Apparel Studies 3,313
Family & Consumer Economics 1,454
Human Sciences Business Services 704
Housing 302
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences (Other) 158

View All Consumer Science Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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