2021 Best Colleges for Social Sciences
Approximately 199,292 social sciences degrees were granted to students last year in the United States. With so many choices it can be a challenge finding the best fit for you. This year's Best Colleges for Social Sciences ranking analyzed 558 colleges and universities that offer a bachelor's degree in social sciences. We look at over 20 factors to determine the top 25 schools for Social Sciences students.
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Choosing a Great Social Sciences School
The social sciences 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.
Overall Quality is a Must
The overall quality of a school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we include a school's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a collection of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
The lowest ranked school in our list is in the top 8% of our overall quality ranking while the vast majority are in at least the top 6%.
Better Early and Mid Career Salaries
A social sciences degree from colleges on this list typically translates into higher than average wages following graduation. A social sciences bachelors degree from a school in the United States helped students who graduated in 2015-2017 earn $33,901 a couple years later.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
- Major Focus - How much a school focuses on Social Sciences students vs. other majors.
- Major Popularity - How many other social sciences students choose this school.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or a recognized social sciences related accrediting body.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for Social Sciences students.
Best Schools to Study Social Sciences in United States
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities to study social sciences. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list. Of the 558 schools analyzed, only 25 earned the distinction of being on this list.
Top 25 Best Social Sciences Colleges
It is hard to beat Claremont McKenna College if you want to study social sciences. Located in the large suburb Claremont, Claremont McKenna is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of 23 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Claremont McKenna is a great college overall.
Claremont McKenna College is a fairly popular school to study social sciences in United States exceeding 182 graduates last year.
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It's hard to beat Yale University if you wish to pursue social sciences as a major. Located in the midsize city New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of 10 out of 1,715 schools nationwide means Yale is a great college overall.
For those interested in something more advanced, Yale also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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University of Pennsylvania is among your best bets if you're planning on studying social sciences. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia. A Best Colleges rank of 9 out of 1,715 schools nationwide means UPenn is a great school overall.
With 618 undergrads, University of Pennsylvania is one of most popular colleges to study social sciences in United States.
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Columbia University in the City of New York is a good choice for students interested in a Social Sciences major. Located in the city New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population. This school ranks 32nd out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.
There are roughly 1277 social sciences undergrads studying this degree at Columbia.
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Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge. A Best Colleges rank of 3 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Harvard is a great college overall.
For those interested in something more advanced, Harvard also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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Located in the large city Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of 19 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means UChicago is a great college overall.
There are about 998 social sciences undergraduates enrolled in this program at UChicago.
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NYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York. This college ranks 130th out of 1,715 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.
For those interested in something more advanced, NYU also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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Brown is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Providence. A Best Colleges rank of 13 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Brown is a great school overall.
For those interested in something more advanced, Brown also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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Located in the city Evanston, Northwestern U is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of 12 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Northwestern U is a great school overall.
For those interested in something more advanced, Northwestern U also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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GWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington. This school ranks 115th out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of District of Columbia.
There are about 1800 social sciences undergrads enrolled in this degree at GWU.
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Located in the remote town Hanover, Dartmouth is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of 15 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Dartmouth is a great school overall.
There are approximately 440 social sciences undergrads studying this degree at Dartmouth.
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Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford. A Best Colleges rank of 6 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Stanford is a great school overall.
With 357 undergraduates, Stanford University is one of most popular colleges to study social sciences in United States.
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Located in the city Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population. This school ranks 55th out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of District of Columbia.
There are roughly 1219 social sciences undergraduates studying this degree at Georgetown.
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UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley. This college ranks 69th out of 1,715 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
For those interested in something more advanced, UC Berkeley also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Doctor's Degree (Research / Scholarship).
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Middlebury is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Middlebury. This college ranks 35th out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of Vermont.
There are about 232 social sciences undergraduates enrolled in this program at Middlebury.
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UCLA is a fairly large public school located in the city of Los Angeles. This college ranks 65th out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
For those interested in something more advanced, UCLA also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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Colgate is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Hamilton. This college ranks 29th out of 1,715 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.
Colgate University is one of the most popular college to study social sciences in United States with more than 296 graduations last year.
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Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Durham. A Best Colleges rank of 2 out of 1,715 schools nationwide means Duke is a great college overall.
For those interested in something more advanced, Duke also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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Located in the large suburb College Park, UMCP is a public college with a very large student population. This school ranks 117th out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of Maryland.
There are approximately 1438 social sciences undergrads studying this degree at UMCP.
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Located in the city Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public college with a very large student population. This school ranks 124th out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of Minnesota.
For those interested in something more advanced, UMN Twin Cities also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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Barnard is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York. This school ranks 77th out of 1,715 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.
With 205 undergrads, Barnard College is one of most popular schools to study social sciences in United States.
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Princeton is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Princeton. A Best Colleges rank of 1 out of 1,715 colleges nationwide means Princeton is a great college overall.
There are roughly 385 social sciences undergrads enrolled in this degree at Princeton.
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Located in the city Irvine, UC Irvine is a public school with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 122nd out of 1,715 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
With 1584 undergraduates, University of California - Irvine is one of most popular colleges to study social sciences in United States.
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Vanderbilt is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Nashville. A Best Colleges rank of 24 out of 1,715 schools nationwide means Vanderbilt is a great school overall.
For those interested in something more advanced, Vanderbilt also offers 2 different higher degree levels in social sciences, the most popular of which is a Master's Degree.
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UCSB is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Santa Barbara. This college ranks 133rd out of 1,715 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
With 1768 undergraduates, University of California - Santa Barbara is one of most popular schools to study social sciences in United States.
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Additional Award Winners
This list shows the rest of the schools awarded a Best Colleges for Social Sciences badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 558 different United States social sciences schools we analyzed.
Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Colleges for Social Sciences award.
Social Sciences by Region
View the Best Colleges for Social Sciences for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| The Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
Social Sciences Related Rankings by Major
Social Sciences Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Economics | 48,297 |
| Political Science & Government | 47,035 |
| Sociology | 37,611 |
| General Social Sciences | 19,694 |
| International Relations & National Security | 15,207 |
View All Social Sciences Related Majors >
Most Popular Majors Related to Social Sciences
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Education | 306,739 |
| Psychology | 177,655 |
| Communication & Journalism | 122,154 |
| Family, Consumer & Human Sciences | 59,281 |
| History | 32,806 |
View All Social Sciences Related Majors >
Notes and References
- The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
- 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 the rest 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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to AndrГ© KГјnzelmann. More about our data sources and methodologies.
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