by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major” ranking.
In 2020-2021, 205,984 social sciences students received their degree, making the major the 5th most popular in the country. In 2019-2020, social sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $36,262 and had an average of $23,306 in loans still to pay off.
At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 3,487 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,260 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major” ranking looked at 204 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social sciences. That schools that top this list have a program in social sciences in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for doctor’s degree social sciences students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pardee RAND Graduate School. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. Pardee RAND Graduate School is a small school located in Santa Monica, California that handed out 10 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Claremont Graduate University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major. Claremont Graduate University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Claremont, California. It awarded 32 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low undergrad 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 more about Social Sciences at Claremont Graduate University
Out of the 204 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Princeton University landed the #3 spot on the list. Princeton University is located in Princeton, New Jersey and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 52 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 204 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major that were part of this year’s ranking, The Graduate Center, CUNY landed the #4 spot on the list. The Graduate Center is a medium-sized public school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 50 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.9% 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%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Out of the 204 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Chicago landed the #5 spot on the list. University of Chicago is a fairly large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 108 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Stanford University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. This fairly large school is located in Stanford, California, and it awarded 66 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The low undergrad 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%.
Yale University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #7. Located in New Haven, Connecticut, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 52 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Howard University ranked #8 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. Howard University is a fairly large school located in Washington, District of Columbia that handed out 26 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.
Brown University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #9. Brown is a fairly large school located in Providence, Rhode Island that handed out 30 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%.
Clark University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. Worcester, Massachusetts is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 13 students in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 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 87%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. Cambridge, Massachusetts 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 31 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 98%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full Massachusetts Institute of Technology Social Sciences Report
Teachers College at Columbia University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. Located in New York, New York, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 17 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Teachers College at Columbia University Social Sciences Report
Gannon University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #13. Located in Erie, Pennsylvania, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 9 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Harvard University landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. Harvard is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 77 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
The New School landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. New School University is located in New York, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 18 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Duke University ranked #16 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. Durham, North Carolina 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 40 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The impressive undergraduate 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. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Cornell University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. Located in Ithaca, New York, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 47 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, 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 96%.
Vanderbilt University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #18. Vanderbilt is located in Nashville, Tennessee and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 27 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.
With a ranking of #19, University of California - San Francisco did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. University of California - San Francisco is a public institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 6 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Social Sciences at University of California - San Francisco
University of Notre Dame landed the #20 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. Notre Dame, Indiana 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 23 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate 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.
University of California - Berkeley ranked #21 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 75 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #22, Hillsdale College did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. Hillsdale College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Hillsdale, Michigan. It awarded 2 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Northwestern University landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking. This large school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 46 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Northwestern University
University of Pennsylvania did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #24. UPenn is a large school located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that handed out 47 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% 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%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of Maryland - College Park ranked #25 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Social Sciences Major list. University of Maryland - College Park is a public institution located in College Park, Maryland. The school has a large population, and it awarded 59 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%.
Not only did these schools make the top 31 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
