College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2023 Best Value Colleges for Urban Studies/Affairs (Income $48-$75k) in California

10 Ranked Colleges
361 Degrees Awarded
Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Urban Studies/Affairs is the 346th most popular major in the country with 1,507 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.

Across California, there were 361 urban studies/affairs graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking analyzed 10 colleges that offered a degree in urban studies/affairs. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great urban studies/affairs programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the urban studies/affairs program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Degree Other Award Levels
Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Urban Affairs Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons 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.

Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 10 Best Value Colleges for Urban Studies/Affairs (Income $48-$75k) in California

1
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, California

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Stanford University landed the #1 spot on the list. Stanford is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Stanford, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Stanford is $7,081 for california urban affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on Urban Studies/Affairs at Stanford University

2

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the #2 spot on the list. UC Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 35 ’s urban affairs degrees to qualified students.

UC Berkeley also made our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Berkeley is $13,423 for California Urban Affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, 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%.

Read full report on Urban Studies/Affairs at UC Berkeley

3

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - San Diego landed the #3 spot on the list. UCSD is a public institution located in La Jolla, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 38 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

UCSD did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” list. It costs about $14,310 for California Urban Affairs students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UCSD.

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 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%.

Full University of California - San Diego Urban Studies/Affairs Report

4

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Irvine landed the #4 spot on the list. UC Irvine is located in Irvine, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 65 ’s urban affairs degrees to qualified students.

UC Irvine not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $13,275 for California Urban Affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The low undergrad 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%.

Full UC Irvine Urban Studies/Affairs Report

5
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 102 diplomas to qualified ’s urban affairs students in 2020-2021.

USC also took the #2 spot in our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Southern California is $22,826 for california urban affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.

Read full report on Urban Studies/Affairs at USC

6

California State University - Northridge did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #6. CSUN is a large school located in Northridge, California that handed out 27 ’s urban affairs degrees in 2020-2021.

CSUN also took the #10 spot in our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CSUN is $10,780 for California Urban Affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Urban Studies/Affairs at CSUN

7
SDSU crest
San Diego State University
San Diego, California

San Diego State University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #7. SDSU is a public institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SDSU, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend San Diego State University is $14,698 for california urban affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Urban Studies/Affairs at SDSU

8
SFSU crest
San Francisco State University
San Francisco, California

San Francisco State University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. This large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 31 ’s urban affairs degrees in 2020-2021.

SFSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for SFSU is $16,065 for california urban affairs students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%.

Full SFSU Urban Studies/Affairs Report

9
USFCA crest
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, California

University of San Francisco ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. San Francisco, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s urban affairs degrees to 12 students in 2020-2021.

USFCA also made our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” list, coming in at #8. It costs about $36,818 for California Urban Affairs students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend USFCA.

The low undergrad 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%.

Read more about Urban Studies/Affairs at USFCA

10
Loyola Marymount crest
Loyola Marymount University
Los Angeles, California

Loyola Marymount University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Urban Affairs Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Loyola Marymount is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Loyola Marymount also took the #6 spot in our “Best Urban Studies/Affairs Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $37,292 for california urban affairs students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Loyola Marymount.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Loyola Marymount University Urban Studies/Affairs Report

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

Credits

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options