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2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California

11 Ranked Colleges
473 Degrees Awarded
$33,300 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Social Sciences is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 5th of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 205,726 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2017-2018, social sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $34,801 and had an average of $23,466 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 50,479 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,934 and $19,309 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 473 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $71,544 and $133,402 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social sciences. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality social sciences programs that also have a lower cost than 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 social sciences program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California.

Top 13 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Social Sciences in California

#4 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - San Diego. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. This large school is located in La Jolla, California, and it awarded 38 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCSD not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - San Diego are $28,631.

Full UCSD Social Sciences Report

#2

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. UCLA is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 69 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCLA, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UCLA are $28,131, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of California - Los Angeles

#3

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California
#8 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #3 spot on the list. University of California - Santa Barbara is a public institution located in Santa Barbara, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 33 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCSB, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Santa Barbara are $28,670, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full UCSB Social Sciences Report

#9 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Irvine. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California. UC Irvine is located in Irvine, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 41 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.

UC Irvine also took the #9 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Irvine are $28,456, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Sciences at UC Irvine

#7 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Davis landed the #5 spot on the list. University of California - Davis is a public institution located in Davis, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 51 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Davis, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Davis are $28,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of California - Davis

#5 in overall quality

University of California - Berkeley did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking, coming in at #6. UC Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 65 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.

UC Berkeley did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UC Berkeley are $29,347.

Read more about Social Sciences at University of California - Berkeley

#10 in overall quality

University of California - Riverside ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. Located in Riverside, California, this large public school handed out 28 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.

UCR did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Riverside are $28,686, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full UCR Social Sciences Report

#7

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#10 in overall quality

San Diego State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree social sciences students list, SDSU has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at SDSU are $18,658, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full SDSU Social Sciences Report

#8

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#11 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Cruz came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking. This fairly large school is located in Santa Cruz, California, and it awarded 13 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz also made our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #11. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Santa Cruz are $28,952, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full University of California - Santa Cruz Social Sciences Report

#9

Claremont Graduate University

Claremont, California
#6 in overall quality

Claremont Graduate University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking, coming in at #9. Located in Claremont, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 26 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree social sciences students list, Claremont Graduate University has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Claremont Graduate University are $36,380, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full Claremont Graduate University Social Sciences Report

#10

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California
#2 in overall quality

University of Southern California ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 21 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree social sciences students list, USC has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at USC are $48,715.

Read more about Social Sciences at USC

#13 in overall quality

University of California - Merced came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking. UC Merced is a public institution located in Merced, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Merced, the school also landed the #13 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Merced are $43,854, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Sciences at UC Merced

#11

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

Stanford University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 48 students in 2019-2020.

Stanford also took the #1 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Stanford University are $55,011, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Stanford University

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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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