Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Civil Engineering Master's Degree Schools in California

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Civil Engineering Master's Degree Schools in California

20 Colleges
$70,613 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Civil Engineering Master's Degree School for You

Civil Engineering is the #28 most popular major in California with 1,035 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

The Best Civil Engineering Master's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 20 schools in California to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Civil Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best for civil eng majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 10 Best Civil Engineering Master's Degree Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for civil engineering students who want to pursue a master’s degree in California. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Full Civil Engineering at Stanford University Report

#2

Santa Clara University

Santa Clara, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Santa Clara University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Civil Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the midsize city of Santa Clara, SCU is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Read More…

Out of the 20 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Southern California landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Full Civil Engineering at University of Southern California Report

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is a great place for civil engineering students working on their master’s degree. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public school located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo.

Read More…

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of California - San Diego is a great place for civil engineering students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Civil Engineering at University of California - San Diego Report

University of California - Berkeley came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Civil Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Berkeley.

Full Civil Engineering at University of California - Berkeley Report

#7

Loyola Marymount University

Los Angeles, CA

Loyola Marymount University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for civil engineering students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Full Civil Engineering at Loyola Marymount University Report

San Jose State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for civil engineering students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. San Jose State is a very large public school located in the city of San Jose.

Read More…

University of California - Los Angeles came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Civil Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. UCLA is a fairly large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.

Read full report on Civil Engineering at University of California - Los Angeles

University of California - Davis ranked #10 on this year’s Best Civil Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in California list. UC Davis is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Davis.

Read full report on Civil Engineering at University of California - Davis

Best Civil Engineering Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Civil Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 209
Oregon 98
Nevada 55
Hawaii 23
Alaska 11

One of 39 majors within the area of study, civil engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Civil Eng

Related Major Annual Graduates
Electrical Engineering 11,021
Mechanical Engineering 9,007
Computer Engineering 5,557
Biomedical Engineering 4,252
General Engineering 3,548

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 20 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 the rest 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Master Sgt. Roger Parsons.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Graduate Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited graduate schools across the U.S.