Interested in attending a STEM school in California? Our ranking of top research universities for bachelor’s degrees displays schools that will best prepare you for STEM careers.
California’s higher education institutes span across the entire state, allowing students to study by the beach, in the forest, in small towns, and in large cities. The largest university, the University of California, Los Angeles, serves nearly 44,000 students and offers a tuition rate around $13,000. This isn’t the only school with a large student body though. California is home to 23 colleges and universities with student populations of over 20,000 students.
Find college admissions consultants in your state.
However, more than half of the state’s schools serve smaller student populations, offering plenty of options for students who crave a more intimate campus experience. Additionally, California boasts 50 religiously affiliated schools. Many of these schools have high graduation rates, though tuition costs can range greatly, from $8,000 at Bethesda University up to $54,000 at Pepperdine University.
Additionally, many of California’s colleges and universities boast influential faculty and alumni, including Neil Armstrong, Jerry Lewis, and Weird Al
Yankovic. In addition to famous alumni and professors, California’s schools are also home to some of the country’s top degree programs, including nursing, business, religious studies, education, literature, and law.
Though Hollywood has given an inside look into California’s most popular landmarks and attractions, these one-of-a-kind places aren’t the only reason people flock to The Golden State. With hundreds of colleges and universities to choose from, students have countless opportunities to further their education in California.
To learn more about earning your degree in California, check out some of the state’s top programs and career paths.
Less 
Related: Differences between research universities and teaching colleges
The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great. This is why, at the undergraduate level, we rank the best colleges and universities based on what we “Concentrated Influence”. Concentrated Influence takes the combined influence score of a college or university’s top academic influencers (including faculty and alums) and divides it by the school’s total number of undergraduates.
Using concentrated influence gives small and mid-sized schools an opportunity to shine by taking away the size advantage of larger universities. A small school with proportionately more influential faculty than a large school, whose influence in absolute terms may be bigger, will nonetheless score higher in a concentrated influence ranking. Our approach highlights undergraduate schools that truly rank for excellence, regardless of size.
If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities for a bachelor’s degree, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching and whether their graduates are themselves advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence.
Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is free from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.
Find out more about our ranking methodology here.
Less A research university is a great option for students interested in obtaining STEM degrees. Research universities invest heavily in research, which consequently provides meaningful and extensive opportunities for its students and faculty to participate in research. There are 30 research universities in California. The list below of the 25 best research universities in the state satisfies the following three conditions:
Tuition + fees
$55K
Acceptance
7%
Graduation
92%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1545/35
View profile
California Institute of Technology’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$54K
Acceptance
5%
Graduation
95%
Student body
15K
Median SAT/ACT
1505/33
View profile
Stanford University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
17%
Graduation
92%
Student body
42K
Median SAT/ACT
1430/33
View profile
University of California, Berkeley’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$58K
Acceptance
16%
Graduation
92%
Student body
40K
Median SAT/ACT
1445/32
View profile
University of Southern California’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$13K
Acceptance
14%
Graduation
91%
Student body
44K
Median SAT/ACT
1415/32
View profile
University of California, Los Angeles’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
37%
Graduation
87%
Student body
38K
Median SAT/ACT
1370/30
View profile
University of California, San Diego’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$56K
Acceptance
42%
Graduation
89%
Student body
8K
Median SAT/ACT
1340/29
View profile
Pepperdine University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
37%
Graduation
84%
Student body
26K
Median SAT/ACT
1355/30
View profile
University of California, Santa Barbara’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
65%
Graduation
76%
Student body
20K
Median SAT/ACT
1290/29
View profile
University of California, Santa Cruz’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$54K
Acceptance
51%
Graduation
92%
Student body
8K
Median SAT/ACT
1360/30
View profile
Santa Clara University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
46%
Graduation
86%
Student body
36K
Median SAT/ACT
1290/28
View profile
University of California, Davis’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
30%
Graduation
85%
Student body
37K
Median SAT/ACT
1295/28
View profile
University of California, Irvine’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
66%
Graduation
77%
Student body
24K
Median SAT/ACT
1230/26
View profile
University of California, Riverside’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$50K
Acceptance
50%
Graduation
83%
Student body
8K
Median SAT/ACT
1320/29
View profile
Loyola Marymount University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$14K
Acceptance
85%
Graduation
69%
Student body
9K
Median SAT/ACT
1090/22
View profile
University of California, Merced’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$51K
Acceptance
59%
Graduation
80%
Student body
8K
Median SAT/ACT
1280/28
View profile
University of San Diego’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$55K
Acceptance
58%
Graduation
80%
Student body
9K
Median SAT/ACT
1285/28
View profile
Chapman University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$50K
Acceptance
70%
Graduation
71%
Student body
10K
Median SAT/ACT
1230/26
View profile
University of San Francisco’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$42K
Acceptance
64%
Graduation
71%
Student body
5K
Median SAT/ACT
1195/24
View profile
Biola University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$50K
Acceptance
71%
Graduation
70%
Student body
5K
Median SAT/ACT
1240/27
View profile
University of the Pacific ’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$8K
Acceptance
37%
Graduation
76%
Student body
33K
Median SAT/ACT
1215/25
View profile
San Diego State University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$40K
Acceptance
94%
Graduation
66%
Student body
9K
Median SAT/ACT
1145/23
View profile
Azusa Pacific University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$12K
Acceptance
95%
Graduation
8%
Student body
7K
View profile
Brandman University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$7K
Acceptance
90%
Graduation
58%
Student body
22K
Median SAT/ACT
1035/19
View profile
California State University, Fresno’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$45K
Acceptance
76%
Graduation
66%
Student body
6K
Median SAT/ACT
1115/21
View profile
University of La Verne’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
What are Custom College Rankings?
College Strategist
Stay informed! Get the latest Academic Influence news, information, and rankings with our upcoming newsletter.