History colleges in California, ranked by graduates
35 colleges in California awarded at least 10 bachelor's degrees in history in 2023: 2,388 degrees, 1.4% of all bachelor's degrees at those colleges (1% across every college CollegeCalcAI tracks). UCLA graduated the most (197, 2.1% of its class). 26 of the 35 are public universities. The median acceptance rate among them is 66%; the most selective is Stanford University at 4%.
History colleges in California
Every California college awarding at least 10 bachelor's degrees in history, ranked by 2023 graduates. Click a college for its history page.
| # | College | Type | Degrees (2023) | Share of grads | Acceptance rate | SAT 75th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UCLA | Public | 197 | 2.1% | 9% | 1510 |
| 2 | UC Santa Barbara | Public | 155 | 2.4% | 33% | 1430 |
| 3 | Sacramento State University | Public | 129 | 1.7% | 94% | 1170 |
| 4 | Cal State Long Beach | Public | 127 | 1.4% | 46% | 1280 |
| 5 | Cal State Fullerton | Public | 126 | 1.3% | 91% | 1230 |
| 6 | University of California, Berkeley | Public | 114 | 1.2% | 11% | 1530 |
| 7 | Cal State San Bernardino | Public | 114 | 2.6% | 94% | 1090 |
| 8 | UC Davis | Public | 107 | 1.3% | 42% | 1380 |
| 9 | UC Riverside | Public | 106 | 2% | 76% | 1300 |
| 10 | Cal Poly Pomona | Public | 100 | 1.7% | 75% | 1300 |
| 11 | UC Santa Cruz | Public | 93 | 2% | 66% | 1180 |
| 12 | San Diego State University | Public | 89 | 1% | 36% | 1340 |
| 13 | Fresno State University | Public | 83 | 1.6% | 95% | 1160 |
| 14 | University of Southern California | Private | 78 | 1.4% | 10% | 1530 |
| 15 | UC Irvine | Public | 70 | 0.9% | 29% | 1420 |
| 16 | Cal State San Marcos | Public | 68 | 2.1% | 95% | 1190 |
| 17 | Cal State Northridge | Public | 65 | 0.8% | 93% | 1150 |
| 18 | UC San Diego | Public | 65 | 0.7% | 27% | 1490 |
| 19 | Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | Public | 61 | 1.2% | 31% | 1420 |
| 20 | Cal State Stanislaus | Public | 52 | 2.1% | 98% | 1080 |
| 21 | Cal State Los Angeles | Public | 51 | 1% | 91% | 1150 |
| 22 | San Jose State University | Public | 49 | 0.8% | 85% | 1220 |
| 23 | San Francisco State University | Public | 44 | 0.9% | 96% | 1180 |
| 24 | Cal State Dominguez Hills | Public | 40 | 1.3% | 93% | 1020 |
| 25 | Cal State Chico | Public | 36 | 1.1% | 93% | 1170 |
| 26 | Cal State East Bay | Public | 33 | 1% | 97% | 1080 |
| 27 | Chapman University | Private | 20 | 1.1% | 65% | 1380 |
| 28 | Cal Poly Humboldt | Public | 19 | 1.4% | 98% | 1150 |
| 29 | Stanford University | Private | 17 | 0.9% | 4% | 1570 |
| 30 | Vanguard University | Private | 17 | 3.4% | 62% | 1150 |
| 31 | University of San Francisco | Private | 15 | 1.1% | 62% | 1340 |
| 32 | Pomona College | Private | 14 | 3.1% | 7% | 1540 |
| 33 | Loyola Marymount University | Private | 12 | 0.7% | 45% | 1370 |
| 34 | Saint Mary's College of California | Private | 12 | 1.8% | 87% | 1290 |
| 35 | University of San Diego | Private | 10 | 0.8% | 52% | 1360 |
Questions about history colleges in California
What is the best college for history in California?
By bachelor's degrees awarded in 2023, the largest history programs in California are UCLA (197), UC Santa Barbara (155), Sacramento State University (129). "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 history?
35 four-year colleges in California awarded 10 or more bachelor's degrees in history in 2023, 26 public and 9 private, for 2,388 graduates in total.
Is in-state status an advantage for history in California?
At the 26 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.
History 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.