37 Best colleges for Critical Care Nursing in California, US

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in California ranked based on their research performance in Critical Care Nursing. A graph of 3.15M citations received by 69.4K academic papers made by 37 universities in California was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University of California - San Francisco

San Francisco

For Critical Care Nursing

#3 in the United States

#4 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 13%
Enrollment: 3,007
Male:Female: 36:64
Founded: 1864

2. Stanford University

Stanford

For Critical Care Nursing

#10 in the United States

#11 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 4%
Average SAT: 1545
Average ACT: 35
Net Price: $25,078

3. University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles

For Critical Care Nursing

#15 in the United States

#17 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 9%
Receiving Aid: 59%
Average Aid: $25,627
Enrollment: 47,335

4. University of California-San Diego

San Diego

For Critical Care Nursing

#22 in the United States

#25 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 27%
Receiving Aid: 66%
Average Aid: $25,757
Enrollment: 44,256

5. University of Southern California

Los Angeles

For Critical Care Nursing

#34 in the United States

#38 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 10%
Average SAT: 1500
Average ACT: 34
Net Price: $43,412

6. University of California - Davis

Davis

For Critical Care Nursing

#58 in the United States

#67 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 42%
Receiving Aid: 65%
Average Aid: $24,591
Enrollment: 40,065

7. University of California - Irvine

Irvine

For Critical Care Nursing

#72 in the United States

#84 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 29%
Receiving Aid: 61%
Average Aid: $23,110
Enrollment: 37,297

8. Loma Linda University

Loma Linda

For Critical Care Nursing

#97 in the United States

#110 in North America

Enrollment: 4,210
Male:Female: 34:66
Founded: 1905

9. University of California - Berkeley

Berkeley

For Critical Care Nursing

#120 in the United States

#135 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 11%
Receiving Aid: 63%
Average Aid: $29,608
Enrollment: 45,882

10. Palo Alto University

Palo Alto

For Critical Care Nursing

#141 in the United States

#157 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 12%
Enrollment: 1,065
Male:Female: 16:84
Founded: 1975

11. Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science

Los Angeles

For Critical Care Nursing

#147 in the United States

#165 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 39%
Net Price: $35,558
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $4,276

12. Western University of Health Sciences

Pomona

For Critical Care Nursing

#154 in the United States

#172 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 8%
Enrollment: 3,665
Male:Female: 35:65
Founded: 1977

13. West Los Angeles College

Culver

For Critical Care Nursing

#197 in the United States

#216 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Receiving Aid: 83%
Average Aid: $5,857
Enrollment: 9,255

14. University of California - Riverside

Riverside

For Critical Care Nursing

#203 in the United States

#222 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 76%
Receiving Aid: 80%
Average Aid: $24,355
Enrollment: 26,384

15. University of the Pacific

Stockton

For Critical Care Nursing

#224 in the United States

#243 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Average SAT: 1332
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $31,670

16. San Diego State University

San Diego

For Critical Care Nursing

#225 in the United States

#244 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 36%
Receiving Aid: 62%
Average Aid: $12,053
Enrollment: 41,137

17. University of San Francisco

San Francisco

For Critical Care Nursing

#226 in the United States

#245 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 62%
Average SAT: 1290
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $45,443

18. University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara

For Critical Care Nursing

#232 in the United States

#251 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 33%
Receiving Aid: 61%
Average Aid: $24,695
Enrollment: 26,133

19. Touro University California

Vallejo

For Critical Care Nursing

#233 in the United States

#252 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 0%
Enrollment: 1,144
Male:Female: 36:64
Founded: 1997

20. California State University - Fresno

Fresno

For Critical Care Nursing

#241 in the United States

#261 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 95%
Receiving Aid: 88%
Average Aid: $12,326
Enrollment: 24,427

21. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach

For Critical Care Nursing

#248 in the United States

#268 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 46%
Receiving Aid: 82%
Average Aid: $11,795
Enrollment: 42,003

22. University of San Diego

San Diego

For Critical Care Nursing

#258 in the United States

#279 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 52%
Net Price: $37,918
Receiving Aid: 87%
Average Aid: $40,965

23. Dominican University of California

San Rafael

For Critical Care Nursing

#305 in the United States

#329 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 83%
Average SAT: 1255
Net Price: $37,456
Receiving Aid: 100%

24. San Jose State University

San Jose

For Critical Care Nursing

#311 in the United States

#336 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 85%
Receiving Aid: 69%
Average Aid: $12,353
Enrollment: 37,661

25. California State University - Sacramento

Sacramento

For Critical Care Nursing

#328 in the United States

#356 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 94%
Receiving Aid: 86%
Average Aid: $12,767
Enrollment: 31,943

26. Humboldt State University

Arcata

For Critical Care Nursing

#364 in the United States

#397 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 98%
Receiving Aid: 74%
Average Aid: $10,748
Enrollment: 6,237

27. California Institute of Technology

Pasadena

For Critical Care Nursing

#373 in the United States

#408 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 3%
Net Price: $14,513
Receiving Aid: 70%
Average Aid: $72,373

28. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton

For Critical Care Nursing

#383 in the United States

#418 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Receiving Aid: 83%
Average Aid: $11,234
Enrollment: 43,662

29. Azusa Pacific University

Azusa

For Critical Care Nursing

#388 in the United States

#423 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 88%
Average SAT: 1111
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $26,143

30. Chapman University

Orange

For Critical Care Nursing

#389 in the United States

#424 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 65%
Average SAT: 1350
Average ACT: 30
Net Price: $47,902

31. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles

For Critical Care Nursing

#390 in the United States

#425 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Receiving Aid: 95%
Average Aid: $13,824
Enrollment: 23,163

32. California State University - East Bay

Hayward

For Critical Care Nursing

#399 in the United States

#435 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 97%
Receiving Aid: 82%
Average Aid: $12,369
Enrollment: 12,326

33. Samuel Merritt University

Oakland

For Critical Care Nursing

#412 in the United States

#450 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 66%
Enrollment: 1,926
Male:Female: 22:78
Founded: 1909

34. Fielding Graduate University

Santa Barbara

For Critical Care Nursing

#418 in the United States

#456 in North America

Enrollment: 915
Male:Female: 18:82
Founded: 1974

35. California State University - San Bernardino

San Bernardino

For Critical Care Nursing

#424 in the United States

#462 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 94%
Receiving Aid: 91%
Average Aid: $12,167
Enrollment: 18,492

36. University of the West

Rosemead

For Critical Care Nursing

#443 in the United States

#481 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Net Price: $14,713
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $9,445

37. University of California - Merced

Merced

For Critical Care Nursing

#445 in the United States

#483 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Receiving Aid: 91%
Average Aid: $27,292
Enrollment: 9,110

Closest to California states to learn Critical Care Nursing

State	Universities Unis	Best university country rank Best uni rank
Nevada	4	161
Oregon	6	32
Utah	3	30
Arizona	5	48
Idaho	3	275
Washington	6	4
Colorado	7	11
Nebraska	4	67
South Dakota	3	173
Kansas	5	109
Texas	33	12
Oklahoma	7	89
North Dakota	2	188
Minnesota	4	5
Iowa	4	46
Missouri	8	18
Arkansas	5	69
Louisiana	8	75
Wisconsin	5	40
Illinois	15	17
Mississippi	5	88
Indiana	13	35
Michigan	10	6
Tennessee	16	36
Alabama	8	29
Kentucky	4	64
Ohio	20	27
Georgia	13	13
West Virginia	5	98
South Carolina	5	47
North Carolina	13	23
Virginia	14	42
Pennsylvania	29	7
Florida	18	25
District of Columbia	5	39
Maryland	9	2
New York	38	14
New Jersey	6	61
Connecticut	6	9
Massachusetts	19	1
New Hampshire	3	111
Rhode Island	4	45