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Best Value History Schools in California

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2023 Best Value History Schools in California

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

23 Colleges
$12,189 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$27,322 Avg Salary

Finding the Best History School for You

With 330 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, history is the #26 most popular major in California.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Value History Schools in California ranking. Our analysis looked at 23 schools in California to see which programs offered the best value experiences for history students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value History Schools in California

Check out the history programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best History Schools

#1

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA
$7,304 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found San Francisco State University to be the best value school for history students who want to pursue a degree in California. Located in the large city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SFSU are $7,304 per year.

Full History at San Francisco State University Report

$6,976 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fullerton. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value History Schools in California list. Cal State Fullerton is a very large public school located in the large suburb of Fullerton.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Cal State Fullerton are $6,976 a year.

Read full report on History at California State University - Fullerton

#3

Sonoma State University

Rohnert Park, CA
$7,988 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 23 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Sonoma State University landed the # 3 spot on the list. SSU is a moderately-sized public school located in the large suburb of Rohnert Park.

SSU undergraduate students pay an average of $7,988 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

$6,846 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Long Beach. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value History Schools in California list. CSULB is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Long Beach.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSULB are $6,846 per year.

Read More…

$7,043 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means California State University - Northridge is a great value for history students. Located in the large city of Northridge, CSUN is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSUN are $7,043 per year.

Read full report on History at California State University - Northridge

$6,653 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - Fresno did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for history students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the large city of Fresno, Fresno State is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Fresno State undergraduate students pay an average of $6,653 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

$10,195 Average Tuition & Fees

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value history programs. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public school located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo are $10,195 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also is in the top 15% of our Best History Schools in California ranking.

Read full report on History at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

#8

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA
$8,136 Average Tuition & Fees

San Diego State University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value History Schools in California list. Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

SDSU undergraduate students pay an average of $8,136 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

$14,226 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on this year’s best value schools for history students. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UC Berkeley are $14,226 per year.

UC Berkeley also made our Best History Schools in California list, coming in at #3.

Full History at University of California - Berkeley Report

$7,439 Average Tuition & Fees

California State Polytechnic University - Pomona did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for history students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Pomona, Cal Poly Pomona is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Cal Poly Pomona undergraduate students pay an average of $7,439 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on History at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona

Best Value History Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 32
Oregon 14
Nevada 10
Hawaii 3

More History Rankings in California

History Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
History 4,391

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 199,724
Psychology 42,013
Social Sciences 22,292
Communication & Journalism 12,242
Library Science 5,929

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 23 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 Abraham Ortelius.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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