38 Best colleges for Orthodontics 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 Orthodontics. A graph of 1.06M citations received by 27.3K academic papers made by 38 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 Orthodontics

#7 in the United States

#8 in North America

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

2. Stanford University

Stanford

For Orthodontics

#11 in the United States

#12 in North America

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

3. University of Southern California

Los Angeles

For Orthodontics

#13 in the United States

#14 in North America

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

4. University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles

For Orthodontics

#16 in the United States

#17 in North America

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

5. University of California - Berkeley

Berkeley

For Orthodontics

#22 in the United States

#24 in North America

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

6. Loma Linda University

Loma Linda

For Orthodontics

#24 in the United States

#26 in North America

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

7. University of California - Davis

Davis

For Orthodontics

#48 in the United States

#53 in North America

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

8. University of California-San Diego

San Diego

For Orthodontics

#53 in the United States

#59 in North America

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

9. University of the Pacific

Stockton

For Orthodontics

#72 in the United States

#80 in North America

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

10. University of California - Irvine

Irvine

For Orthodontics

#78 in the United States

#89 in North America

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

11. California Institute of Technology

Pasadena

For Orthodontics

#90 in the United States

#102 in North America

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

12. University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara

For Orthodontics

#127 in the United States

#143 in North America

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

13. University of California - Riverside

Riverside

For Orthodontics

#160 in the United States

#181 in North America

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

14. San Diego State University

San Diego

For Orthodontics

#169 in the United States

#190 in North America

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

15. San Jose State University

San Jose

For Orthodontics

#175 in the United States

#196 in North America

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

16. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton

For Orthodontics

#178 in the United States

#199 in North America

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

17. University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz

For Orthodontics

#198 in the United States

#221 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 66%
Receiving Aid: 64%
Average Aid: $22,774
Enrollment: 19,938

18. Santa Clara University

Santa Clara

For Orthodontics

#204 in the United States

#227 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 48%
Average SAT: 1420
Average ACT: 32
Net Price: $53,883

19. Naval Postgraduate School

Monterey

For Orthodontics

#211 in the United States

#234 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 23%
Enrollment: 2,441
Male:Female: 79:21
Founded: 1909

20. Western University of Health Sciences

Pomona

For Orthodontics

#229 in the United States

#253 in North America

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

21. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach

For Orthodontics

#231 in the United States

#255 in North America

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

22. San Francisco State University

San Francisco

For Orthodontics

#232 in the United States

#256 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 96%
Receiving Aid: 81%
Average Aid: $12,996
Enrollment: 22,563

23. California State University - Northridge

Los Angeles

For Orthodontics

#242 in the United States

#266 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 93%
Receiving Aid: 86%
Average Aid: $12,825
Enrollment: 38,313

24. University of San Francisco

San Francisco

For Orthodontics

#253 in the United States

#278 in North America

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

25. Harvey Mudd College

Claremont

For Orthodontics

#266 in the United States

#291 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 13%
Average SAT: 1535
Average ACT: 35
Net Price: $43,966

26. California State University - Chico

Chico

For Orthodontics

#279 in the United States

#306 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 93%
Receiving Aid: 75%
Average Aid: $11,509
Enrollment: 15,257

27. Humboldt State University

Arcata

For Orthodontics

#281 in the United States

#308 in North America

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

28. West Los Angeles College

Culver

For Orthodontics

#283 in the United States

#310 in North America

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

29. Chapman University

Orange

For Orthodontics

#295 in the United States

#324 in North America

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

30. California State University - Sacramento

Sacramento

For Orthodontics

#304 in the United States

#334 in North America

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

31. University of California - Merced

Merced

For Orthodontics

#310 in the United States

#340 in North America

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

32. California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

San Luis Obispo

For Orthodontics

#326 in the United States

#356 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 31%
Receiving Aid: 62%
Average Aid: $14,338
Enrollment: 23,069

33. Pomona College

Claremont

For Orthodontics

#342 in the United States

#375 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 7%
Average SAT: 1525
Average ACT: 34
Net Price: $19,938

34. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles

For Orthodontics

#359 in the United States

#392 in North America

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

35. California State University - Fresno

Fresno

For Orthodontics

#361 in the United States

#394 in North America

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

36. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson

For Orthodontics

#363 in the United States

#396 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 93%
Receiving Aid: 95%
Average Aid: $13,951
Enrollment: 15,182

37. Palo Alto University

Palo Alto

For Orthodontics

#368 in the United States

#403 in North America

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

38. California State Polytechnic University - Pomona

Pomona

For Orthodontics

#384 in the United States

#420 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Receiving Aid: 80%
Average Aid: $11,833
Enrollment: 27,636

Closest to California states to learn Orthodontics

State	Universities Unis	Best university country rank Best uni rank
Nevada	3	156
Oregon	7	57
Utah	3	43
Arizona	4	93
Idaho	3	249
Washington	7	2
Colorado	9	67
Nebraska	4	83
Kansas	4	103
Texas	26	15
Oklahoma	7	91
North Dakota	2	317
Minnesota	5	12
Iowa	4	14
Missouri	9	46
Arkansas	4	145
Louisiana	8	45
Wisconsin	6	37
Illinois	15	23
Mississippi	4	134
Indiana	10	27
Michigan	11	1
Tennessee	10	74
Alabama	7	35
Kentucky	3	34
Ohio	18	10
Georgia	10	31
South Carolina	4	80
North Carolina	9	5
Virginia	10	56
Pennsylvania	20	4
Florida	17	9
District of Columbia	5	108
Maryland	10	25
New York	39	6
New Jersey	10	28
Connecticut	6	39
Massachusetts	18	3
Rhode Island	3	47