Psychology colleges in California, ranked by graduates
55 colleges in California awarded at least 10 bachelor's degrees in psychology in 2023: 17,229 degrees, 9.3% of all bachelor's degrees at those colleges (7.3% across every college CollegeCalcAI tracks). UCLA graduated the most (1,107, 11.6% of its class). 27 of the 55 are public universities. The median acceptance rate among them is 74%; the most selective is Stanford University at 4%.
Psychology colleges in California
Every California college awarding at least 10 bachelor's degrees in psychology, ranked by 2023 graduates. Click a college for its psychology page.
| # | College | Type | Degrees (2023) | Share of grads | Acceptance rate | SAT 75th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UCLA | Public | 1,107 | 11.6% | 9% | 1510 |
| 2 | Cal State Fullerton | Public | 1,071 | 11.4% | 91% | 1230 |
| 3 | Cal State Northridge | Public | 1,037 | 12.6% | 93% | 1150 |
| 4 | UC Irvine | Public | 1,034 | 12.6% | 29% | 1420 |
| 5 | UC Davis | Public | 875 | 10.7% | 42% | 1380 |
| 6 | UC San Diego | Public | 810 | 9.1% | 27% | 1490 |
| 7 | Cal State Long Beach | Public | 688 | 7.8% | 46% | 1280 |
| 8 | San Diego State University | Public | 669 | 7.8% | 36% | 1340 |
| 9 | UC Santa Barbara | Public | 661 | 10.3% | 33% | 1430 |
| 10 | Fresno State University | Public | 644 | 12.5% | 95% | 1160 |
| 11 | Sacramento State University | Public | 640 | 8.5% | 94% | 1170 |
| 12 | UC Riverside | Public | 586 | 10.9% | 76% | 1300 |
| 13 | Cal State San Bernardino | Public | 544 | 12.6% | 94% | 1090 |
| 14 | Cal State Dominguez Hills | Public | 488 | 15.4% | 93% | 1020 |
| 15 | Cal State Stanislaus | Public | 477 | 19.3% | 98% | 1080 |
| 16 | UC Santa Cruz | Public | 448 | 9.6% | 66% | 1180 |
| 17 | San Francisco State University | Public | 442 | 8.7% | 96% | 1180 |
| 18 | San Jose State University | Public | 432 | 6.9% | 85% | 1220 |
| 19 | Cal State Los Angeles | Public | 419 | 7.9% | 91% | 1150 |
| 20 | Cal State East Bay | Public | 368 | 11.5% | 97% | 1080 |
| 21 | Cal Poly Pomona | Public | 363 | 6.2% | 75% | 1300 |
| 22 | University of California, Berkeley | Public | 307 | 3.3% | 11% | 1530 |
| 23 | Cal State San Marcos | Public | 306 | 9.2% | 95% | 1190 |
| 24 | Cal State Chico | Public | 259 | 8% | 93% | 1170 |
| 25 | Cal State Monterey Bay | Public | 250 | 14.1% | 97% | 1130 |
| 26 | University of Southern California | Private | 223 | 3.9% | 10% | 1530 |
| 27 | California Baptist University | Private | 179 | 9.5% | 85% | 1170 |
| 28 | Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | Public | 152 | 3% | 31% | 1420 |
| 29 | Chapman University | Private | 151 | 8.3% | 65% | 1380 |
| 30 | Cal Poly Humboldt | Public | 129 | 9.8% | 98% | 1150 |
| 31 | Loyola Marymount University | Private | 125 | 7.4% | 45% | 1370 |
| 32 | University of San Francisco | Private | 124 | 9.4% | 62% | 1340 |
| 33 | Azusa Pacific University | Private | 104 | 8.7% | 88% | 1200 |
| 34 | University of San Diego | Private | 99 | 7.7% | 52% | 1360 |
| 35 | Santa Clara University | Private | 98 | 7.3% | 48% | 1430 |
| 36 | Biola University | Private | 95 | 12.3% | 74% | 1260 |
| 37 | Pepperdine University | Private | 93 | 11.2% | 63% | 1400 |
| 38 | California Lutheran University | Private | 83 | 13% | 76% | 1230 |
| 39 | Vanguard University | Private | 75 | 15% | 62% | 1150 |
| 40 | Stanford University | Private | 74 | 4.1% | 4% | 1570 |
| 41 | Saint Mary's College of California | Private | 65 | 9.7% | 87% | 1290 |
| 42 | Point Loma Nazarene University | Private | 57 | 7.2% | 84% | 1290 |
| 43 | University of the Pacific | Private | 45 | 5.7% | 71% | 1300 |
| 44 | Simpson University | Private | 44 | 24.4% | 86% | 1060 |
| 45 | Fresno Pacific University | Private | 40 | 7.7% | 64% | 1150 |
| 46 | Jessup University | Private | 31 | 16.5% | 68% | 1150 |
| 47 | Occidental College | Private | 31 | 7.7% | 44% | 1420 |
| 48 | William Jessup University | Private | 31 | 16.5% | 93% | 1120 |
| 49 | Westmont College | Private | 29 | 9% | 77% | 1150 |
| 50 | Concordia University Irvine | Private | 28 | 6.7% | 66% | 1150 |
| 51 | Hope International University | Private | 28 | 20.9% | 33% | 1120 |
| 52 | Dominican University (CA) | Private | 21 | 7.1% | 84% | 1150 |
| 53 | Claremont McKenna College | Private | 20 | 5.8% | 10% | 1520 |
| 54 | Pomona College | Private | 17 | 3.8% | 7% | 1540 |
| 55 | La Sierra University | Private | 13 | 5.9% | 92% | 1120 |
Questions about psychology colleges in California
What is the best college for psychology in California?
By bachelor's degrees awarded in 2023, the largest psychology programs in California are UCLA (1,107), Cal State Fullerton (1,071), Cal State Northridge (1,037). "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 psychology?
55 four-year colleges in California awarded 10 or more bachelor's degrees in psychology in 2023, 27 public and 28 private, for 17,229 graduates in total.
Is in-state status an advantage for psychology in California?
At the 27 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.
Psychology 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.