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2023 Most Focused Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy in California

12 Ranked Colleges
252 Degrees Awarded
$32,872 Avg Salary
Schools for a Bachelor's Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California” ranking.

Public Policy is the 113th most popular major in the country with 6,430 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, public policy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $49,451 and had an average of $21,866 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 798 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $52,313 and $22,744 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 252 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,566 and $21,995 respectively.

This year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California” ranking analyzed 12 colleges that offered a degree in public policy. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their public policy program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.

Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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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 “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California

The colleges and universities below are the best for california bachelor’s degree public policy students.

Top 12 Most Focused Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy in California

1
Mills crest
Mills College
Oakland, California

Out of the 12 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Mills College landed the #1 spot on the list. Mills is a small school located in Oakland, California that handed out 22 bachelors’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read more about Public Policy at Mills College

2
Pomona crest
Pomona College
Claremont, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Pomona College. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California. Pomona College is located in Claremont, California and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 10 bachelors’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Public Policy at Pomona College

3

Out of the 12 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Riverside landed the #3 spot on the list. University of California - Riverside is a public institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 91 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, 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 91%.

Read more about Public Policy at UCR

4
University of Redlands crest
University of Redlands
Redlands, California

Out of the 12 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Redlands landed the #4 spot on the list. University of Redlands is located in Redlands, California and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 18 bachelors’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Public Policy at University of Redlands

5
Claremont McKenna crest
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont, California

Out of the 12 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Claremont McKenna College landed the #5 spot on the list. Claremont McKenna College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Claremont, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. 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 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full Claremont McKenna Public Policy Report

6

University of California - Los Angeles ranked #6 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California list. University of California - Los Angeles is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 61 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.6% 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 96%.

Read full report on Public Policy at University of California - Los Angeles

7
MSMU crest
Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, California

With a ranking of #7, Mount Saint Mary’s University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 2 degrees to qualified bachelors’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full MSMU Public Policy Report

8
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, California

Stanford University ranked #8 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California list. Located in Stanford, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 10 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

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 impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Public Policy at Stanford

9
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California ranking. USC is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 33 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.

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%. 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%.

Read more about Public Policy at University of Southern California

10
Chapman crest
Chapman University
Orange, California

Chapman University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California ranking, coming in at #10. Orange, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s public policy degrees to 1 students in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Public Policy at Chapman University

11
Scripps crest
Scripps College
Claremont, California

Scripps College did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California ranking, coming in at #11. Scripps College is located in Claremont, California and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 0 bachelors’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Public Policy at Scripps College

11
Pitzer crest
Pitzer College
Claremont, California

With a ranking of #11, Pitzer College did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Public Policy Major in California list. Pitzer is a small school located in Claremont, California that handed out 0 bachelors’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.6% 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 full report on Public Policy at Pitzer

Notes and References

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