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2024 Best Sociology Bachelor's Degree Schools in California

51 Colleges in California
8,861 Bachelor's Degrees
$31,659 Avg Early-Career Salary
Sociology is of the hottest bachelor's degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #19 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual reviewed 51 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of sociology. Combined, these schools handed out 8,861 bachelor's degrees in sociology to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Sociology School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Sociology Bachelor's Degree Schools in California Your choice of sociology for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

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

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Sociology Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Sociology Bachelor's Degree Schools 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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.


 

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Sociology in California

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in sociology.

10 Top California Schools for a Bachelor's in Sociology

1
356 Annual Graduates
$42,238 Median Starting Salary
$13,131 Median Student Debt

University of California - Berkeley is a good choice for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in sociology. UC Berkeley is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Berkeley.

Bachelor's recipients from the sociology major at University of California - Berkeley earn $10,579 more than the average graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - Berkeley

2
737 Annual Graduates
$32,675 Median Starting Salary
$14,500 Median Student Debt

It's hard to beat University of California - Los Angeles if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in sociology. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the sociology program make about $32,675 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - Los Angeles

3
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
16 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in sociology has to take a look at Stanford University. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Stanford.More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from Stanford University

4
61 Annual Graduates
$37,102 Median Starting Salary
$10,324 Median Student Debt

University of Southern California is a good choice for students interested in a bachelor's degree in sociology. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles.

Those sociology students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Southern California receive $5,443 more than the standard sociology graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of Southern California

5
264 Annual Graduates
$31,674 Median Starting Salary
$12,600 Median Student Debt

Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the sociology program state that they receive average early career income of $31,674.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - Davis

6
286 Annual Graduates
$29,085 Median Starting Salary
$15,000 Median Student Debt

UC Irvine is a very large public university located in the large city of Irvine.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the sociology program earn about $29,085 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - Irvine

7
717 Annual Graduates
$28,687 Median Starting Salary
$13,500 Median Student Debt

Located in the suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the sociology program state that they receive average early career earnings of $28,687.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - Santa Barbara

8
157 Annual Graduates
$29,964 Median Starting Salary
$14,413 Median Student Debt

UCSD is a very large public university located in the city of La Jolla.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the sociology program report average early career earnings of $29,964.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - San Diego

9

San Jose State is a very large public university located in the city of San Jose.

Sociology bachelor's degree recipients from San Jose State University get an earnings boost of about $9,964 above the average income of sociology majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from San Jose State University

10
261 Annual Graduates
$27,765 Median Starting Salary
$16,500 Median Student Debt

UC Santa Cruz is a large public university located in the city of Santa Cruz.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the sociology program state that they receive average early career income of $27,765.

More information about a bachelor’s in sociology from University of California - Santa Cruz

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 226 639
Oregon 185 319
Nevada 129 104
Hawaii 112 93
Alaska 75 5

View All Rankings >

One of 13 majors within the Social Sciences area of study, Sociology has other similar majors worth exploring.

Sociology Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Sociology 8,861

Related Major Annual Graduates
Economics 6,623
Political Science & Government 6,117
Anthropology 1,780
International Relations & National Security 816
Geography & Cartography 632
General Social Sciences 568
Other Social Sciences 355
Urban Studies 260
Archeology 10

Notes and References

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