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2024 Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools in California

10 Colleges in California
69 Doctor's Degrees
$82,868 Avg Early-Career Salary
Sociology is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #45 most popular doctor's degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 10 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for sociology students pursuing a doctor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 69 doctor's degrees in sociology to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Sociology School for Your Doctor's Degree

Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools in California The sociology doctor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality sociology program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To take this into account we include a school's overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of various 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 doctorate graduates during the early years of their career. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their doctor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

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

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for sociology students working on their doctor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Sociology Schools

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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Sociology Doctor's Degree Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Best Schools for Doctorate Students to Study Sociology in California

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in sociology.

10 Top California Schools for a Doctorate in Sociology

1
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
10 Annual Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in a doctor's degree in sociology needs to look into Stanford University. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in sociology from Stanford University

2

University of California - Berkeley is a great decision for students pursuing a doctor's degree in sociology. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a very large student population.

Doctorate graduates who receive their degree from the sociology program earn an average of $82,868 in their early career salary.

More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Berkeley

3
2 Annual Graduates

University of Southern California is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a doctor's degree in sociology. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of Southern California

4
10 Annual Graduates

It's hard to beat University of California - Los Angeles if you want to pursue a doctor's degree in sociology. UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Los Angeles

5
11 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Irvine

6
3 Annual Graduates

UCSB is a very large public university located in the suburb of Santa Barbara.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Santa Barbara

7
1 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - San Diego

8
2 Annual Graduates

UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Davis.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Davis

8
6 Annual Graduates

Located in the small city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public university with a large student population.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Santa Cruz

9
6 Annual Graduates

UCR is a very large public university located in the city of Riverside.More information about a doctorate in sociology from University of California - Riverside

Best Sociology Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Sociology Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 122 5
Oregon 107 10
Nevada 84 2
Hawaii 53 2

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Sociology is one of 13 different types of Social Sciences programs to choose from.

Sociology Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Sociology 69

Related Major Annual Graduates
Economics 203
Political Science & Government 80
Anthropology 72
Geography & Cartography 36
International Relations & National Security 13
Archeology 5
Urban Studies 2
Other Social Sciences 2
Demography & Population Studies 1

Notes and References

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