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Best Financial Planning Schools Near Merced, CA (2026)
Updated September 7, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Merced, California is home to about 89,766 residents. Median household income is $59,938 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 18.0% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Merced, CA metro area, the top-earning financial planning-related role is Financial Managers at a median $134,170 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Financial Planning Schools to Merced
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer financial planning programs near Merced, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Merced city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Merced.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
Merced is part of the Merced, CA metro area (BLS area code 32900). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to California statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Personal Financial Advisors
$130,330
CA statewide
$132,584
Financial Managers
$134,170
Merced, CA
$136,490
Financial and Investment Analysts
$84,440
Merced, CA
$85,900
Accountants and Auditors
$80,420
Merced, CA
$81,811
Financial Examiners
$106,000
CA statewide
$107,833
Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents
$65,930
Merced, CA
$67,070
Loan Officers
$78,940
Merced, CA
$80,305
Credit Counselors
$67,120
CA statewide
$68,281
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Merced at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
89,766
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$59,938
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
18.0%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
98.3 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Merced-Area Cities With Financial Planning Programs
What are the highest-paying financial planning roles near Merced?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying financial planning-related roles near Merced are: Financial Managers ($134,170), Personal Financial Advisors ($130,330), Financial Examiners ($106,000). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with California statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Atwater instead of Merced?
Atwater, CA is 7.4 miles from Merced and has its own set of local financial planning programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Merced an affordable place to study financial planning?
Merced’s median household income of $59,938 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Merced while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and California public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 7, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
