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2024 Best Social Work Schools in California

25 Colleges in California
4,819 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$48,229 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #13 in popularity, social work is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual looked at 25 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Social Work Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 4,819 degrees in social work during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Social Work School

Best Social Work Schools in California The social work program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Social Work rankings. We derive our Best Overall Social Work School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Social Work Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Social Work
Master's Degrees in Social Work
Doctor's Degrees in Social Work

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 Social Work Schools in California list to help you make the college decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Social Work in California

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the social work degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top California Schools in Social Work

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,081 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$50,797 Median Starting Salary

University of Southern California is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in social work. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #11 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were about 1081 social work students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available. Those social work students who get their degree from University of Southern California receive $2,568 more than the typical social work grad.

More information about a degree in social work from University of Southern California

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
197 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$53,585 Median Starting Salary

Every student pursuing a degree in social work has to look into University of California - Berkeley. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.

There were roughly 197 social work students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent year we have data available. Social Work degree recipients from University of California - Berkeley earn a boost of about $5,355 above the average earnings of social work graduates.

More information about a degree in social work from University of California - Berkeley

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
92 Social Work Degrees Awarded
9.8% Growth in Graduates

Every student who is interested in social work has to check out University of California - Los Angeles. UCLA is a very large public university located in the large city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #26 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were approximately 92 social work students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent data year. Those social work students who get their degree from University of California - Los Angeles receive $10,468 more than the typical social work grad.

More information about a degree in social work from University of California - Los Angeles

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
201 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$43,293 Median Starting Salary

Any student pursuing a degree in social work has to check out San Diego State University. Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #141 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SDSU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 201 social work students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the social work program make about $43,293 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in social work from San Diego State University

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
211 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$54,163 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #161 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means San Jose State is a great university overall.

There were about 211 social work students who graduated with this degree at San Jose State in the most recent data year. Social Work degree recipients from San Jose State University earn a boost of about $5,933 above the average earnings of social work graduates.

More information about a degree in social work from San Jose State University

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
301 Social Work Degrees Awarded
0.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #186 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means CSULB is a great university overall.

There were roughly 301 social work students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the social work program report average early career wages of $44,746.

More information about a degree in social work from California State University - Long Beach

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
310 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$45,677 Median Starting Salary

Sac State is a fairly large public university located in the city of Sacramento. A Best Colleges rank of #249 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Sac State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 310 social work students who graduated with this degree at Sac State in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, social work degree recipients usually make an average of $45,677 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in social work from California State University - Sacramento

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
77 Social Work Degrees Awarded
1.3% Growth in Graduates

Cal State East Bay is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Hayward. This university ranks 61st out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 77 social work students who graduated with this degree at Cal State East Bay in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the social work degree program at California State University - East Bay make $21,437 above the typical college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in social work from California State University - East Bay

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
155 Social Work Degrees Awarded
$46,686 Median Starting Salary

CSUSB is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of San Bernardino. This university ranks 99th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 155 social work students who graduated with this degree at CSUSB in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the social work program report average early career income of $46,686.

More information about a degree in social work from California State University - San Bernardino

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
16th Most Popular In CA
108 Social Work Degrees Awarded

Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Riverside. This university ranks 82nd out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 108 social work students who graduated with this degree at Cal Baptist in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in social work from California Baptist University


 

Best Social Work Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 300 678
Oregon 266 501
Nevada 192 462
Hawaii 164 199
Alaska 119 74

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Social Work Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 4,817
Other Social Work 2

View All Social Work Concentrations >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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