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2024 Best Health & Physical Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in California

32 Colleges in California
5,817 Bachelor's Degrees
$27,676 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #9 in popularity, health & physical education is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 32 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for health & physical education students pursuing a bachelor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 5,817 bachelor's degrees in health & physical education to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Health & Physical Education School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Health & Physical Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in California The phys ed bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we include a school's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a combination of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for health & physical education students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Phys Ed Rankings Other Ranking Categories

The phys ed school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Health & Physical Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in California.

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. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Health & Physical Education in California

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in health & physical education.

10 Top California Schools for a Bachelor's in Phys Ed

1
416 Annual Graduates
$24,520 Median Starting Salary
$15,000 Median Student Debt

San Diego State University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in health & physical education. Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program state that they receive average early career earnings of $24,520.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from San Diego State University

2

Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in health & physical education needs to check out San Jose State University. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a very large student population.

Those health & physical education students who get their bachelor's degree from San Jose State University make $8,739 more than the standard phys ed grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from San Jose State University

3
293 Annual Graduates
$25,102 Median Starting Salary
$14,551 Median Student Debt

Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in health & physical education has to check out California State University - Long Beach. Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program report average early career wages of $25,102.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from California State University - Long Beach

4
216 Annual Graduates
$28,883 Median Starting Salary
$17,500 Median Student Debt

Any student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in health & physical education has to take a look at San Francisco State University. Located in the city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program report average early career earnings of $28,883.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from San Francisco State University

5
544 Annual Graduates
$27,044 Median Starting Salary
$14,481 Median Student Debt

Cal State Fullerton is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Fullerton.

Soon after graduating, phys ed bachelor's recipients usually make around $27,044 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from California State University - Fullerton

6
106 Annual Graduates
$29,831 Median Starting Salary
$16,666 Median Student Debt

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public university located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo.

Health & Physical Education bachelor's degree recipients from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo get an earnings boost of about $2,155 over the typical income of health & physical education majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

7
151 Annual Graduates
$32,614 Median Starting Salary
$27,449 Median Student Debt

Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Riverside.

Those health & physical education students who get their bachelor's degree from California Baptist University receive $4,938 more than the average phys ed grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from California Baptist University

8
300 Annual Graduates
$28,931 Median Starting Salary
$18,129 Median Student Debt

Sac State is a very large public university located in the city of Sacramento.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program state that they receive average early career earnings of $28,931.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from California State University - Sacramento

9
USFCA crest
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
56 Annual Graduates
$32,329 Median Starting Salary
$24,905 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of San Francisco, USFCA is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.

Those health & physical education students who get their bachelor's degree from University of San Francisco make $4,653 more than the standard phys ed grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from University of San Francisco

10
216 Annual Graduates
$23,129 Median Starting Salary
$21,315 Median Student Debt

Chico State is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Chico.

Soon after graduating, phys ed bachelor's recipients generally make an average of $23,129 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from California State University - Chico

Best Health & Physical Education Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Health & Physical Education Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 226 428
Oregon 185 499
Nevada 129 253
Hawaii 112 159
Alaska 75 19

View All Rankings >

One of 4 majors within the Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies area of study, Health & Physical Education has other similar majors worth exploring.

Phys Ed Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness General 4,754
Exercise Science and Kinesiology 938
Sports Management 104
Sports Studies 12
Outdoor Health & Physical Education/Fitness 9

Majors Similar to Phys Ed

Related Major Annual Graduates
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies 609

Notes and References

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