2023 Best Value General Engineering Schools in California
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best General Engineering School for You
In 2020-2021, 266 degrees and certificates were awarded to general engineering students who went to a California college or university. This makes it the #70 most popular major in the state.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Grad Degree Search has created its Best Value General Engineering Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 10 schools in California to see which ones offered the best value programs for engineering students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
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2023 Best Value General Engineering Schools in California
The following schools top our list of the Best Value General Engineering Colleges.
Top 10 Best General Engineering Schools
Our 2023 rankings named University of California - Los Angeles the best value school in California for general engineering students. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UCLA are $13,258 a year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UCLA also is in the top 10% of our Best General Engineering Schools in California ranking.
Full General Engineering at University of California - Los Angeles Report
The excellent programs at San Jose State University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best general engineering schools in California. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public college with a fairly large student population.
San Jose State undergraduate students pay an average of $7,852 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, San Jose State also is in the top 20% of our Best General Engineering Schools in California ranking.
Full General Engineering at San Jose State University Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value General Engineering Schools in California list. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UC Berkeley are $14,226 a year.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UC Berkeley is ranked #3 for overall quality for engineering in California.
Read full report on General Engineering at University of California - Berkeley
The excellent programs at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best general engineering schools in California. Cal Poly Pomona is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Pomona.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal Poly Pomona are $7,439 per year.
Full General Engineering at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona Report
Out of the 10 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the # 5 spot on the list. Fresno State is a very large public school located in the city of Fresno.
Fresno State undergraduate students pay an average of $6,653 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general engineering students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo undergraduate students pay an average of $10,195 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also did well on our Best General Engineering Schools in California list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Read full report on General Engineering at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo
San Francisco State University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value General Engineering Schools in California list. SFSU is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Francisco.
SFSU undergraduate students pay an average of $7,304 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
University of California - Irvine landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general engineering programs. Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public school with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UC Irvine are $13,775 a year.
Read full report on General Engineering at University of California - Irvine
University of California - Riverside landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general engineering programs. Located in the large city of Riverside, UCR is a public college with a very large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UCR are $13,754 per year.
Read full report on General Engineering at University of California - Riverside
University of the Pacific landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general engineering programs. Pacific is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Stockton.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Pacific are $52,352 a year.
Read full report on General Engineering at University of the Pacific
Best Value General Engineering Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Value General Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
State | Degrees Awarded |
---|---|
Washington | 4 |
Oregon | 15 |
Alaska | 3 |
More General Engineering Rankings in California
Majors Related to Engineering
General Engineering is one of 39 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related to Engineering
Related Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Electrical Engineering | 11,021 |
Mechanical Engineering | 9,007 |
Civil Engineering | 6,042 |
Computer Engineering | 5,557 |
Biomedical Engineering | 4,252 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 10 schools only.
- 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 Rémi Kaupp.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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