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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Sociology (Income $0-$30k) in California

59 Ranked Colleges
8,454 Degrees Awarded
$7,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor's in California For Those Making $0-$30k

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 “Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.

Sociology is the 24th most popular major in the country with 37,807 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, sociology graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,727 and had an average of $23,622 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 14,493 sociology graduates with average earnings and debt of $29,922 and $18,563 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 8,454 sociology graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 59 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in sociology. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality sociology programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the sociology program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Sociology Schools

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college 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. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Sociology (Income $0-$30k) in California

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

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 Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Stanford is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Stanford also took the #1 spot in our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Stanford is $-1,387 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k. The negative number means the student will receive more financial aid on average than it costs to attend the school.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on Sociology at Stanford University

#2

Claremont McKenna College

Claremont, California
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Claremont McKenna College. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Claremont McKenna is a private not-for-profit institution located in Claremont, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 2 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Claremont McKenna also made our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for Claremont McKenna College is $8,566 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Sociology at Claremont McKenna

Out of the 59 schools in the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the #3 spot on the list. UC Berkeley is a large public school situated in Berkeley, California. It awarded 310 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Berkeley is $8,392 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Read more about Sociology at University of California - Berkeley

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Los Angeles. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Cal State LA is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 452 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - Los Angeles is $1,379 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 Sociology at California State University - Los Angeles

#5

Pomona College

Claremont, California
#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pomona College. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Claremont, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.

Pomona also made our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #5. The yearly cost to attend Pomona is $6,945 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full Pomona Sociology Report

#6

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

University of California - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large public school awarded 779 degrees to qualified bachelors’s sociology students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCLA, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UCLA is $8,553 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The low student loan default rate of 1.0% 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 Sociology at UCLA

University of California - Irvine did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #7. Irvine, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 238 students in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $9,558 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Full UC Irvine Sociology Report

California State University - Dominguez Hills came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. CSUDH is a fairly large public school situated in Carson, California. It awarded 246 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - Dominguez Hills is $2,455 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full CSUDH Sociology Report

California State University - Fullerton ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Fullerton, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 382 students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Cal State Fullerton is $4,291 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%.

Read more about Sociology at Cal State Fullerton

California State University - Fresno landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Fresno State is located in Fresno, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 142 bachelors’s sociology degrees to qualified students.

It costs about $3,264 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Fresno.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Full California State University - Fresno Sociology Report

California State University - Stanislaus came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. California State University - Stanislaus is a public institution located in Turlock, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 169 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Stan State is $3,410 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Stan State Sociology Report

#12

Pitzer College

Claremont, California

With a ranking of #12, Pitzer College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Pitzer is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Claremont, California. It awarded 18 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

Pitzer also took the #8 spot in our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $15,922 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Pitzer.

The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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 impressive 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.

Full Pitzer Sociology Report

#13

University of California - Riverside

Riverside, California

With a ranking of #13, University of California - Riverside did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of California - Riverside is a large public school situated in Riverside, California. It awarded 339 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

UCR did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #20 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for UCR is $8,366 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.1% 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.

Full University of California - Riverside Sociology Report

California State University - Long Beach landed the #14 spot on the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This large school is located in Long Beach, California, and it awarded 322 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

CSULB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #21 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Long Beach is $6,364 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Sociology at CSULB

University of California - Davis ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Davis, California, and it awarded 275 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Davis also took the #9 spot in our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC Davis is $9,842 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The low student loan default rate of 1.9% 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%.

Full UC Davis Sociology Report

California State University - Northridge did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #16. Located in Northridge, California, this large public school awarded 531 degrees to qualified bachelors’s sociology students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - Northridge is $5,945 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%.

Full CSUN Sociology Report

#17

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California

University of California - Santa Barbara came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of California - Santa Barbara is a large school located in Santa Barbara, California that handed out 713 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

UCSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Santa Barbara is $10,316 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Sociology at UCSB

#18

California State University - San Bernardino

San Bernardino, California

With a ranking of #18, California State University - San Bernardino did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in San Bernardino, California, this fairly large public school awarded 301 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s sociology students in 2019-2020.

It costs about $5,077 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - San Bernardino.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Sociology at California State University - San Bernardino

#19

San Diego State University

San Diego, California

San Diego State University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in San Diego, California, and it awarded 112 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend San Diego State University is $8,870 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full SDSU Sociology Report

University of California - San Diego did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #20. UCSD is located in La Jolla, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 121 bachelors’s sociology degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCSD, the school also landed the #16 spot in our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UCSD is $9,280 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

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 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Sociology at University of California - San Diego

California State University - Bakersfield came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Bakersfield, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 110 students in 2019-2020.

It costs about $3,423 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CSUB.

Full CSUB Sociology Report

California State University - Sacramento came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Sacramento, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 224 students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Sacramento is $6,819 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Sociology at Sac State

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo ranked #23 on this year’s Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. San Luis Obispo, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 69 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is $12,475 for california bachelor’s degree sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Read full report on Sociology at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

California State University - East Bay ranked #24 on this year’s Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Hayward, California, and it awarded 235 bachelors’s sociology degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal State East Bay not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #23 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State East Bay is $8,036 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Sociology at Cal State East Bay

#25

San Jose State University

San Jose, California

San Jose State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Sociology Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #25. San Jose, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s sociology degrees to 190 students in 2019-2020.

San Jose State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #17 on our “Best Sociology Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State is $10,940 for California Bachelor’s Degree Sociology students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Sociology at San Jose State University

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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Kontos.

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