Best Health Science Schools Near Oakland, CA (2026)

Updated September 6, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Oakland, California has 5 accredited schools offering health science programs, with tuition ranging from $16,347 to $50,547 per year for indexed programs. Oakland has a population of about 438,072. Median household income is $97,369 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 47.9% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area, the top-earning health science-related role is Medical and Health Services Manager at a median $166,310 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Health Science Schools to Oakland

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer health science programs near Oakland, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Oakland 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:

  • 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 Oakland. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

Northeastern University Oakland

Oakland, CA 2.0 miles from Oakland
  • 4 year
42.7 BOC Score
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $92,538
Avg net price $25,181/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 0%
  • Programs offered: 20

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Merritt College

Oakland, CA 2.7 miles from Oakland
  • 2 year
36.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 21%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $44,392
Avg net price $14,021/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 38

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all California schools on the California health science page.

Health Science Wages Near Oakland

Oakland is part of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area (BLS area code 41860). 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)
Medical and Health Services Manager $166,310 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $143,867
Health Education Specialist $99,260 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $85,865
Health Information Technologist $111,480 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $96,436
Health Technologist and Technician $71,360 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $61,730

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.

Oakland at a Glance

Metric Value Source
Population 438,072 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income $97,369 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ 47.9% Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100) 115.6 (above U.S. average) BEA RPP 2024

Other Oakland-Area Cities With Health Science Programs

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited health science schools are near Oakland, CA?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering health science programs near Oakland. The closest is Northeastern University Oakland in Oakland, CA (2.0 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Chabot College (11.9 miles). 2 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying health science roles near Oakland?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying health science-related roles near Oakland are: Medical and Health Services Manager ($166,310), Health Information Technologist ($111,480), Health Education Specialist ($99,260). 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 Alameda instead of Oakland?

Alameda, CA is 3.2 miles from Oakland and has its own set of local health science programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Oakland an affordable place to study health science?

Oakland’s median household income of $97,369 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Oakland 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.

Learn More About Health Science Programs

Other Programs Available in Oakland

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Oakland:

Data verified: September 6, 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.

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