Best colleges for Urban Studies/Affairs in California
Program-level earnings — not school prestige — rank these. Among the California programs in the federal field-of-study file, University of California-Berkeley leads: its Urban Studies/Affairs graduates earn a median $76,125 four years after finishing, against the field's $62,532 national median. (Scorecard field-of-study, 2026.)
| # | College | Grad earnings, 4 yrs | Vs field median |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of California-Berkeley | $76,125 | +$13,593 |
| 2 | California State University-Northridge | $72,148 | +$9,616 |
| 3 | University of California-San Diego | $71,380 | +$8,848 |
| 4 | San Francisco State University | $70,207 | +$7,675 |
| 5 | University of California-Irvine | $63,819 | +$1,287 |
How big is the earnings gap between California Urban Studies/Affairs programs?
$12,306 separates the top and bottom of this list — $76,125 at University of California-Berkeley against $63,819 at University of California-Irvine, four years after finishing. Same field, same state, same federal measure: where you study moves pay by that much.
Do California Urban Studies/Affairs graduates earn more than the national median?
The state's strongest program pays $13,593 above the $62,532 national median for the field. Program-level medians come from federal tax records of graduates who received aid, so they track actual pay rather than advertised salaries.