2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Economics (Income $48-$75k) in California
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2019-2020, 48,831 people earned their degree in economics, making the major the 18th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, economics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $47,295 and had an average of $21,978 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 9,937 economics graduates with average earnings and debt of $47,367 and $16,994 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 6,426 economics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 47 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in economics. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great economics programs and 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 economics program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Economics (Income $48-$75k) in California
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Stanford University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k. Stanford is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 90 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Stanford, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $1,959 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Stanford University.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pomona College. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. This small school is located in Claremont, California, and it awarded 60 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
Pomona not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Pomona College is $11,811 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
Out of the 47 schools in the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Claremont McKenna College landed the #3 spot on the list. Claremont McKenna College is located in Claremont, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 118 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
Claremont McKenna also made our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #1. The estimated yearly cost for Claremont McKenna is $19,009 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The 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.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k. University of California - Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 751 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Berkeley, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC Berkeley is $13,081 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. 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%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. University of California - Los Angeles is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 824 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UCLA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Los Angeles is $13,081 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of California - Santa Barbara came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. University of California - Santa Barbara is a large school located in Santa Barbara, California that handed out 703 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
UCSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend UCSB is $15,343 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The low student loan default rate of 1.5% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
California State University - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #7. California State University - Los Angeles is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 23 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Los Angeles is $5,644 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
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%.
University of California - Davis ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. University of California - Davis is a public institution located in Davis, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 606 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UC Davis did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for UC Davis is $13,578 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, 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 93%.
Read more about Economics at University of California - Davis
University of California - Irvine ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. University of California - Irvine is a large school located in Irvine, California that handed out 441 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k list, UC Irvine has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UC Irvine is $13,648 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at University of California - Irvine
University of California - Riverside landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. University of California - Riverside is a large school located in Riverside, California that handed out 263 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
UCR also made our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #18. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Riverside is $12,290 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, 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.
University of California - San Diego came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. UCSD is located in La Jolla, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 403 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
UCSD also made our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #12. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - San Diego is $14,071 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
California State University - Fullerton ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Located in Fullerton, California, this large public school handed out 51 degrees to qualified bachelors’s economics students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $9,427 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend California State University - Fullerton.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, 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 89%.
Full California State University - Fullerton Economics Report
With a ranking of #13, California State University - Fresno did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. California State University - Fresno is located in Fresno, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 30 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $7,549 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Fresno State.
The low student loan default rate of 4.7% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #14, California State University - Stanislaus did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. This fairly large school is located in Turlock, California, and it awarded 20 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Stanislaus is $7,772 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at California State University - Stanislaus
Pitzer College came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Pitzer is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Claremont, California. It awarded 29 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
Pitzer also made our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. The yearly cost to attend Pitzer College is $15,939 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. 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.
California State University - Long Beach came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. California State University - Long Beach is located in Long Beach, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 69 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
The yearly cost to attend CSULB is $10,807 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.
California State University - Northridge ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Located in Northridge, California, this large public school handed out 118 degrees to qualified bachelors’s economics students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $10,783 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend California State University - Northridge.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at California State University - Northridge
Occidental College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #18. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s economics degrees to 80 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Oxy, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $19,364 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Occidental College.
The 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 school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
San Diego State University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. San Diego State University is located in San Diego, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 236 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k list, SDSU has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SDSU is $14,730 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
California State University - Bakersfield came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. California State University - Bakersfield is located in Bakersfield, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 24 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for CSUB is $7,564 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
Read more about Economics at California State University - Bakersfield
California State University - Sacramento did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #21. This large school is located in Sacramento, California, and it awarded 195 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Sac State is $11,413 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The low student loan default rate of 4.6% 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 Economics at California State University - Sacramento
California State University - San Bernardino did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #22. CSUSB is a fairly large public school situated in San Bernardino, California. It awarded 35 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for CSUSB is $8,924 for california bachelor’s degree economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
University of Southern California came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. USC is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 183 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at USC, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for USC is $20,050 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. 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 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 Economics at University of Southern California
University of California - Santa Cruz ranked #24 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. This fairly large school is located in Santa Cruz, California, and it awarded 165 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
UC Santa Cruz also made our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #22. The estimated yearly cost for UC Santa Cruz is $15,253 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, 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 students.
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #25 spot on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Located in San Luis Obispo, California, this large public school handed out 52 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s economics students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, the school also landed the #16 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is $19,407 for California Bachelor’s Degree Economics students whose families make $48-$75k.
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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
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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.
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- Credit for the banner image above goes to pixabay.
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