2023 Best Value Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools in California
Identifying High-Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which computer science program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school or bootcamp that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Computer Science Degree Search has created the Best Value Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 9 schools in California to see which doctor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for computer science students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Featured schools near , edit
Top Value Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools in California
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our 2023 rankings named University of California - Berkeley the best value school in California for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in Berkeley, California, the large public school awarded 54 diplomas to qualifed doctor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UC Berkeley are $29,262 per year.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UC Berkeley does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 90% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
UC Berkeley did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - San Diego. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. UCSD is located in La Jolla, California and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 23 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UCSD are $28,666 a year.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UCSD. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 65% took at least some of their classes online.
UCSD did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Santa Barbara. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. University of California - Santa Barbara is a large public school located in Santa Barbara, California that handed out 16 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UCSB are $28,683 per year.
One thing to take note of is that UCSB does offer online graduate classes in some areas. During the 2019-2020 year, about 99% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
UCSB also made our Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list, coming in at #5.
Read full report on University of California - Santa Barbara
The excellent doctor’s degree programs at University of California - Irvine helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best value computer science schools in California. UC Irvine is a public institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 32 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
UC Irvine graduate students pay an average of $28,458 in tuition and fees each year.
UC Irvine does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 95% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Out of the 9 schools in California that were part of this year’s value ranking, University of California - Riverside landed the # 5 spot on the list. Riverside, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctor’s degrees to 28 students in 2020-2021.
UCR graduate students pay an average of $28,569 in tuition and fees each year.
One thing to take note of is that UCR does offer online graduate classes in some areas. In 2019-2020 about 84% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for computer science students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. This fairly large public school is located in Santa Cruz, California, and it awarded 9 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UC Santa Cruz are $28,997 per year.
One thing to take note of is that UC Santa Cruz does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 72% took at least some of their classes online.
California Institute of Technology landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value doctor’s degree computer science programs. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctor’s degrees to 1 students in 2020-2021.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Caltech are $58,443 a year.
Caltech also made our Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list, coming in at #1.
With a ranking of #7, Stanford University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree. Stanford University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Stanford, California that handed out 36 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Stanford graduate students pay an average of $55,011 in tuition and fees each year.
Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Stanford. During the 2019-2020 year, about 10% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Stanford not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #2 on our Best Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list.
With a ranking of #9, University of Southern California did quite well on this year’s best value schools for computer science students working on their doctor’s degree. USC is located in Los Angeles, California and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 27 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
USC graduate students pay an average of $61,396 in tuition and fees each year.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at USC. During the 2019-2020 year, about 82% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Best Value Computer Science Doctor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region
View Best Value Computer Science Doctor’s Degree Schools Nationwide >
More California Rankings
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 9 schools only.
References
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
![]() |
Southern New Hampshire University You have goals. Southern New Hampshire University can help you get there. Whether you need a bachelor's degree to get into a career or want a master's degree to move up in your current career, SNHU has an online program for you. Find your degree from over 200 online programs. Learn More > |