Architecture colleges in California, ranked by graduates
11 colleges in California awarded at least 10 bachelor's degrees in architecture in 2023: 994 degrees, 1.6% of all bachelor's degrees at those colleges (0.6% across every college CollegeCalcAI tracks). Cal Poly San Luis Obispo graduated the most (244, 4.9% of its class). 7 of the 11 are public universities. The median acceptance rate among them is 52%; the most selective is UCLA at 9%.
Architecture colleges in California
Every California college awarding at least 10 bachelor's degrees in architecture, ranked by 2023 graduates. Click a college for its architecture page.
| # | College | Type | Degrees (2023) | Share of grads | Acceptance rate | SAT 75th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | Public | 244 | 4.9% | 31% | 1420 |
| 2 | Cal Poly Pomona | Public | 191 | 3.3% | 75% | 1300 |
| 3 | University of Southern California | Private | 183 | 3.2% | 10% | 1530 |
| 4 | University of California, Berkeley | Public | 159 | 1.7% | 11% | 1530 |
| 5 | UC San Diego | Public | 64 | 0.7% | 27% | 1490 |
| 6 | Sacramento State University | Public | 43 | 0.6% | 94% | 1170 |
| 7 | University of San Francisco | Private | 35 | 2.7% | 62% | 1340 |
| 8 | California Baptist University | Private | 26 | 1.4% | 85% | 1170 |
| 9 | University of San Diego | Private | 19 | 1.5% | 52% | 1360 |
| 10 | UCLA | Public | 17 | 0.2% | 9% | 1510 |
| 11 | Fresno State University | Public | 13 | 0.3% | 95% | 1160 |
Questions about architecture colleges in California
What is the best college for architecture in California?
By bachelor's degrees awarded in 2023, the largest architecture programs in California are Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (244), Cal Poly Pomona (191), University of Southern California (183). "Best" depends on your profile: this page ranks every California college in the field by output and shows each one's acceptance rate and admitted SAT so you can match it to your own numbers.
How many colleges in California offer architecture?
11 four-year colleges in California awarded 10 or more bachelor's degrees in architecture in 2023, 7 public and 4 private, for 994 graduates in total.
Is in-state status an advantage for architecture in California?
At the 7 public universities on this list, California residents are usually admitted at a higher rate than out-of-state applicants and pay in-state tuition. CollegeCalcAI applies the residency effect when you set your home state, and the per-major adjustment when you set the major.
Architecture elsewhere
The same field in other states, and the national ranking.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS 2023 Completions (bachelor's degrees, first majors, CIP 2-digit series), joined to CollegeCalcAI's admissions dataset. Built 2026-09-19. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are not predictions or guarantees.