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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Mathematics (Income $0-$30k) in California

32 Ranked Colleges
2,723 Degrees Awarded
$8,400 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor's in California For Those Making $0-$30k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

In 2019-2020, 31,080 people earned their degree in mathematics, making the major the 32nd most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, mathematics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $44,066 and had an average of $21,378 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 7,264 mathematics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,923 and $16,559 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 2,723 mathematics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 32 colleges that offered a degree in mathematics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent mathematics programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the mathematics program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Mathematics Schools

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 “Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college 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.

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

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Mathematics (Income $0-$30k) in California

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Stanford is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 50 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Stanford, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $-1,387 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Stanford. The negative number means the student will receive more financial aid on average than it costs to attend the school.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read more about Mathematics at Stanford University

Out of the 32 schools in the Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the #2 spot on the list. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s math degrees to 108 students in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $8,392 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UC Berkeley.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of California - Berkeley Mathematics Report

#3

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 #3 on our 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of California - Los Angeles is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 142 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA also took the #3 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Los Angeles is $8,553 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.0% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read more about Mathematics at University of California - Los Angeles

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Irvine. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of California - Irvine is located in Irvine, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 289 bachelors’s math degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Irvine, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UC Irvine is $9,558 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.3% 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 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Mathematics at UC Irvine

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Los Angeles. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Cal State LA is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 37 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Cal State LA is $1,379 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Los Angeles Mathematics Report

California State University - Long Beach did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. CSULB is a large public school situated in Long Beach, California. It awarded 81 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

CSULB also made our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #13. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Long Beach is $6,364 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, 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 89%.

Read full report on Mathematics at CSULB

University of California - San Diego did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #7. University of California - San Diego is located in La Jolla, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 252 bachelors’s math degrees to qualified students.

UCSD also took the #10 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UCSD is $9,280 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Mathematics at University of California - San Diego

#8

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California

University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Santa Barbara, California, this large public school awarded 198 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s math students in 2019-2020.

UCSB not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Santa Barbara is $10,316 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, 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 students.

Read more about Mathematics at University of California - Santa Barbara

#9

Harvey Mudd College

Claremont, California

Harvey Mudd College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Claremont, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 7 degrees to qualified bachelors’s math students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k list, Harvey Mudd College has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Harvey Mudd College is $16,494 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read more about Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College

California State University - Fresno landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Fresno State is located in Fresno, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 34 bachelors’s math degrees to qualified students.

The estimated yearly cost for Fresno State is $3,264 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, 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 87%.

Read more about Mathematics at Fresno State

#11

University of California - Riverside

Riverside, California

University of California - Riverside landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Riverside, California, this large public school handed out 187 degrees to qualified bachelors’s math students in 2019-2020.

UCR not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Riverside is $8,366 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

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 student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Mathematics at UCR

California State University - Northridge ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. California State University - Northridge is a large public school situated in Northridge, California. It awarded 52 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

CSUN did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #19 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend CSUN is $5,945 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.0% 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 Mathematics at California State University - Northridge

With a ranking of #13, University of California - Davis did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. UC Davis is a large public school situated in Davis, California. It awarded 103 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Davis not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Davis is $9,842 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

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 low 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 Mathematics at UC Davis

California State University - Dominguez Hills ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. CSUDH is a public institution located in Carson, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 27 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $2,455 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Dominguez Hills.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Mathematics at California State University - Dominguez Hills

#15

California State University - San Bernardino

San Bernardino, California

California State University - San Bernardino ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. California State University - San Bernardino is a fairly large public school situated in San Bernardino, California. It awarded 85 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

CSUSB also took the #24 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - San Bernardino is $5,077 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.

Read more about Mathematics at CSUSB

#16

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#20 in overall quality

San Diego State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #16. San Diego State University is a public institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 36 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #20 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Diego State University is $8,870 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The low student loan default rate of 2.8% 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 more about Mathematics at SDSU

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is a large school located in San Luis Obispo, California that handed out 42 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also made our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. It costs about $12,475 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Mathematics at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

California State University - Sacramento ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Sacramento, California, this large public school awarded 57 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s math students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Sac State, the school also landed the #23 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Sac State is $6,819 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Mathematics at California State University - Sacramento

California State Polytechnic University - Pomona came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Pomona, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s math degrees to 99 students in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly Pomona also took the #15 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Cal Poly Pomona is $8,596 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Mathematics at Cal Poly Pomona

#20

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California

University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #20 spot on the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of California - Santa Cruz is a public institution located in Santa Cruz, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 115 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for UC Santa Cruz is $10,872 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The low 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%.

Read full report on Mathematics at University of California - Santa Cruz

#21

Occidental College

Los Angeles, California

Occidental College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #21. Occidental College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 13 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k list, Oxy has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Oxy is $13,146 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Mathematics at Occidental College

#22

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California
#5 in overall quality

University of Southern California came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of Southern California is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 13 bachelors’s math degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at USC, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $14,668 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend USC.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, 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. The 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 Mathematics at University of Southern California

California State University - Chico did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #23. Located in Chico, California, this fairly large public school handed out 34 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s math students in 2019-2020.

Chico State also made our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #18. The estimated yearly cost for Chico State is $10,260 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 Mathematics at Chico State

#24

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California

With a ranking of #24, San Francisco State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 36 bachelors’s math degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend San Francisco State University is $11,123 for California Bachelor’s Degree Math students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full SFSU Mathematics Report

California State University - Channel Islands did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Math Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #25. CSUCI is a public institution located in Camarillo, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 33 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

CSUCI not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #22 on our “Best Mathematics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $10,131 for california bachelor’s degree math students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Channel Islands.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Mathematics at CSUCI

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.

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