The Best California Colleges

List of Colleges and Universities in California

There are 280 colleges and universities in California enrolling 1,389,689 full time students in the state's institutions of higher education. Explore the list of top colleges in California below to get your college search started. The CollegeSimply rankings and listings are objective and data focused to help you find the good colleges. Whether you're searching for a public, private or community college, this guide to universities in California offers a comprehensive view to the state's higher education options.

For a more local search, filter by zip code or find colleges around Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco or Long Beach.

The best college in California is Stanford University and the top public state college is University of California Berkeley.

280 Results (0.14 seconds)

California Public Private For-Profit 4 year 2 year

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Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1420/1570

ACT Range 32/35

Average HS GPA 4.18

Students: 17,381

Tuition:$51,354

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 4%
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Pomona College

Claremont, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1400/1540

ACT Range 31/34

Average HS GPA 3.89*

Students: 1,573

Tuition:$52,780

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 8%
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California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1530/1580

ACT Range 35/36

Average HS GPA 3.97*

Students: 2,233

Tuition:$52,362

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 7%
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University of California Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1320/1530

ACT Range 31/35

Average HS GPA 3.86

Students: 42,501

Tuition:$14,184

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 15%
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C

Claremont McKenna College

Claremont, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1350/1500

ACT Range 31/34

Average HS GPA 3.89*

Students: 1,327

Tuition:$54,405

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 9%
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University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1350/1530

ACT Range 30/34

Average HS GPA 3.73

Students: 47,310

Tuition:$56,225

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 13%
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University of California Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1290/1520

ACT Range 30/34

Average HS GPA 4.29

Students: 44,537

Tuition:$13,226

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 14%
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Harvey Mudd College

Claremont, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1490/1560

ACT Range 34/35

Average HS GPA 3.96*

Students: 902

Tuition:$56,620

Admissions Standards Exceptionally High Standards
Acceptance Rate 14%
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Scripps College

Claremont, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1300/1480

ACT Range 30/33

Average HS GPA 4.13

Students: 1,071

Tuition:$55,024

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 24%
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University of California San Diego

La Jolla, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1260/1470

ACT Range 27/33

Average HS GPA 3.82*

Students: 37,887

Tuition:$14,167

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 30%
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University of California Irvine

Irvine, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1190/1410

ACT Range 25/33

Average HS GPA 3.92

Students: 36,032

Tuition:$13,700

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 29%
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University of California Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1230/1460

ACT Range 27/33

Average HS GPA 3.96

Students: 25,976

Tuition:$14,391

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 32%
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Occidental College

Los Angeles, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1270/1450

ACT Range 28/32

Average HS GPA 3.6

Students: 1,930

Tuition:$54,686

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 37%
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Pepperdine University

Malibu, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1220/1420

ACT Range 26/32

Average HS GPA 3.59

Students: 7,961

Tuition:$53,932

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 36%
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California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo

San Luis Obispo, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1240/1430

ACT Range 26/32

Average HS GPA 3.87

Students: 22,013

Tuition:$9,816

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 30%
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University of California Davis

Davis, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1160/1400

ACT Range 24/32

Average HS GPA 3.99

Students: 38,167

Tuition:$14,402

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 41%
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Santa Clara University

Santa Clara, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1270/1440

ACT Range 28/32

Average HS GPA 3.66

Students: 8,642

Tuition:$51,711

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 50%
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Soka University of America

Aliso Viejo, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1180/1410

ACT Range 25/30

Average HS GPA 3.86

Students: 442

Tuition:$33,146

Admissions Standards Very High Standards
Acceptance Rate 39%
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Loyola Marymount University

Los Angeles, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1210/1390

ACT Range 27/31

Average HS GPA 3.72

Students: 9,838

Tuition:$48,522

Admissions Standards Very High Standards
Acceptance Rate 47%
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University of California Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1190/1400

ACT Range 26/32

Average HS GPA 3.73*

Students: 19,700

Tuition:$13,960

Admissions Standards Extremely High Standards
Acceptance Rate 47%
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University of San Diego

San Diego, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1190/1360

ACT Range 25/30

Average HS GPA 3.88

Students: 9,073

Tuition:$49,358

Admissions Standards Very High Standards
Acceptance Rate 53%
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Chapman University

Orange, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1190/1370

ACT Range 25/30

Average HS GPA 3.68

Students: 9,608

Tuition:$52,724

Admissions Standards Very High Standards
Acceptance Rate 54%
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Westmont College

Santa Barbara, CA • Private 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1110/1370

ACT Range 23/30

Average HS GPA 3.8

Students: 1,277

Tuition:$45,304

Admissions Standards Very High Standards
Acceptance Rate 62%
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San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1110/1310

ACT Range 22/28

Average HS GPA 3.6

Students: 35,303

Tuition:$7,488

Admissions Standards Difficult Requirements
Acceptance Rate 35%
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University of California Riverside

Riverside, CA • Public 4 Year

Admission Price Students Outcomes Majors Location
SAT Range 1110/1330

ACT Range 23/29

Average HS GPA 3.6

Students: 23,922

Tuition:$13,827

Admissions Standards Very High Standards
Acceptance Rate 51%
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