California State University, Bakersfield received top rankings by Washington Monthly magazine as part of its 2023 College Guide.
CSUB ranked No. 10 in the Best Bang for the Buck: West list, one of only two universities from the San Joaquin Valley to make the top 10, the other being CSU Stanislaus. The university was also ranked No. 11 in the Master’s Universities list.
CSUB’s rankings rose significantly from last year, when it was ranked No. 13 in the Best Bang for the Buck list and No. 26 in the Master’s Universities list.
“We are honored that our beloved university continues to top national rankings for social mobility, which measures the power of a CSUB degree to open doors of opportunity for our graduates,” said President Lynnette Zelezny. “Our Roadrunner faculty and staff are working with students to elevate and uplift the communities we serve for generations to come,”
The Best Bang for the Buck list is based on how well colleges help students attain degrees at affordable prices. It is created by isolating social mobility metrics from the main rankings of four-year institutions, according to Washington Monthly.
The Master’s Universities list features four-year institutions that award a significant number of master’s degrees but few or no doctoral degrees. The rankings are determined based on a university’s contributions in three categories: social mobility, research and promoting public service.
In addition to Washington Monthly, CSUB was also recently ranked among the top 20% of universities in the nation in providing students a high return on their educational investment.
National think tank Third Way ranked CSUB in the top tier in its Economic Mobility Index (EMI). The university had the eighth-best EMI percentage at 56.6%. Other CSUs that had high percentages include Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Dominguez Hills.
To create the index, Third Way analyzed more than 1,300 bachelor’s degree-granting institutions to see which schools enroll the highest number of students from low-income households and provide them a high return on their investment.
The think tank then multiplied their rank by the percentage of Pell Grant recipients that each institution enrolls. Data was collected from the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Census’ American Community Survey.
CSUB has received high rankings in affordability and social mobility by various outlets over the past year, including:
Visit the Washington Monthly 2023 College Guide website for the full rankings. Click here to view Third Way’s Economic Mobility Index.
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