2023 Most Popular Business Doctor's Degree Schools in California
A business student has lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school or bootcamp to be a better alternative for you.
The Most Popular Business Doctor's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Business Degree Central has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 32 schools in California to see which doctor's degree programs were the most popular for business students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from each school on the list.
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Most Popular Business Doctor's Degree Schools in California
Learn more about these popular schools below:
Our 2023 rankings named Northcentral University the most popular school in California for business students working on their doctor’s degree. Northcentral University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in San Diego, California. It awarded 259 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 51% were women.
Northcentral University is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Out of the 32 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the # 3 spot on the list. UC Berkeley is a large public school situated in Berkeley, California. It awarded 46 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 30% of those degree recipients were women.
UC Berkeley does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 90% took at least some of their classes online.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Stanford University is a great place for business students working on their doctor’s degree. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Stanford, California, and it awarded 46 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 28% were women.
Stanford does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 10% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
You’ll be in good company if you attend Fielding Graduate University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Business Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Fielding Graduate University is a small private not-for-profit school located in Santa Barbara, California that handed out 29 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 55% were women.
Online graduate courses are available at Fielding, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2019-2020 about 97% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
University of Southern California landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree business programs. This large private not-for-profit school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 28 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 32% of those degree recipients were women.
One thing to take note of is that USC does offer online graduate classes in some areas. During the 2019-2020 year, about 82% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Alliant International University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Alliant International University is a small private for-profit school located in San Diego, California that handed out 27 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 63% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, Alliant is an excellent choice, since graduate classes are offered online.
With a ranking of #7, University of California - Los Angeles did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for business students working on their doctor’s degree. This large public school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 27 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 33% of those degree recipients were women.
Online graduate courses are available at UCLA, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2019-2020 about 79% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
California Intercontinental University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. This very small private for-profit school is located in Irvine, California, and it awarded 26 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 19% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, California Intercontinental University is an excellent choice, since graduate classes are offered online.
University of California - Irvine did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. UC Irvine is located in Irvine, California and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 25 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
Around 32% of those degree recipients were women.
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.
University of California - Davis ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Business Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Davis, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctor’s degrees to 25 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 28% were women.
Online graduate courses are available at UC Davis, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2019-2020 about 52% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #12, Claremont Graduate University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for business students working on their doctor’s degree. Claremont, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctor’s degrees to 21 students in 2020-2021.
Around 19% of those degree recipients were women.
Claremont Graduate University does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. During the 2019-2020 year, about 67% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
University of California - San Diego did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in La Jolla, California, the large public school handed out 21 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 43% were women.
Online graduate courses are available at UCSD, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2019-2020 about 65% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in Los Angeles, California, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 20 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Around 60% of those degree recipients were women.
The Chicago School Los Angeles Campus does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 89% took at least some of their classes online.
Read full report on The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles
University of California - Santa Barbara came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. UCSB is a large public school situated in Santa Barbara, California. It awarded 11 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 18% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UCSB does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 99% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Pardee RAND Graduate School landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree business programs. Located in Santa Monica, California, the very small private not-for-profit school handed out 10 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Around 30% of those degree recipients were women.
University of California - Riverside came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. UCR is a public institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 9 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 33% were women.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at UCR. 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 landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree business programs. UC Santa Cruz is located in Santa Cruz, California and has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 8 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
Around 50% of those degree recipients were women.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at UC Santa Cruz. During the 2019-2020 year, about 72% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #18, Westcliff University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for business students working on their doctor’s degree. Westcliff University is a private for-profit institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 8 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 25% were women.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Westcliff University. In 2019-2020 about 59% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Golden Gate University - San Francisco did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list. Golden Gate University - San Francisco is a small private not-for-profit school situated in San Francisco, California. It awarded 5 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 60% of those degree recipients were women.
Golden Gate University - San Francisco does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 58% took at least some of their classes online.
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Irvine landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree business programs. Located in Irvine, California, the very small private not-for-profit school handed out 4 doctor’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 50% were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at The Chicago School Irvine Campus. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 46% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Read full report on The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Irvine
Saybrook University landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree business programs. Saybrook University is a very small private not-for-profit school situated in Oakland, California. It awarded 4 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 75% were women.
Since the graduate programs at Saybrook University are online, the school is an excellent choice for graduate students who need more flexibility than what is offered at some other schools.
Lincoln University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for business students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #23 on the list. Lincoln University is a very small private not-for-profit school located in Oakland, California that handed out 3 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 33% of those degree recipients were women.
Touro University Worldwide came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. TUW is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Alamitos, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 3 doctor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 67% were women.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out TUW. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
California Miramar University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. California Miramar University is located in San Diego, California and has a very small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2 doctor’s degrees to qualified students.
Around 50% of those degree recipients were women.
Since the graduate programs at California Miramar University are primarily online school, so it is a great choice for returning adults and students who work full time.
Most Popular Business Doctor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region
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Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 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.
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