Best Online Liberal Arts Programs in Los Angeles, CA (2026)

Los Angeles, California has 5 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs, with tuition ranging from $7,008 to $20,310 per year for indexed programs. Los Angeles has a population of about 3,857,897. Median household income is $80,366 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 37.8% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area, the top-earning liberal arts-related role is Management Analyst at a median $104,930 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


Closest Liberal Arts Schools to Los Angeles

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer liberal arts programs near Los Angeles, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Los Angeles 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 Los Angeles. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA 4.7 miles from Los Angeles BOC Score 63.1
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 62%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $72,379
Avg net price $21,413/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 72%
  • Programs offered: 26

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA 9.2 miles from Los Angeles BOC Score 80.2
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 93%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $92,498
Avg net price $32,740/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 96%
  • Programs offered: 68

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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


Liberal Arts Wages Near Los Angeles

Los Angeles is part of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area (BLS area code 31080). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to California statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Public Relations Specialist$79,860Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$70,299
Management Analyst$104,930Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$92,368
Technical Writer$104,000Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$91,549
News Analyst, Reporter, or JournalistN/ACA statewide
Editor$100,050Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$88,072
Training and Development Specialist$71,990Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$63,371
Human Resources Specialist$80,220Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$70,616

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.


Los Angeles at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population3,857,897Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$80,366Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+37.8%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)113.6 (above U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024
Liberal Arts-related employment in Los Angeles County56,719 workers, 18,615 establishmentsBLS QCEW 2024 annual

Other Los Angeles-Area Cities With Liberal Arts Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited liberal arts schools are near Los Angeles, CA?

Accredited schools offering liberal arts programs near Los Angeles are listed on this page, ranked by BOC Score and distance from the city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS and College Scorecard data on every site update, so it stays current as programs open and close.

What are the highest-paying liberal arts roles near Los Angeles?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying liberal arts-related roles near Los Angeles are: Management Analyst ($104,930), Technical Writer ($104,000), Editor ($100,050). 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 Beverly Hills instead of Los Angeles?

Beverly Hills, CA is 2.5 miles from Los Angeles and has its own set of local liberal arts programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Los Angeles an affordable place to study liberal arts?

Los Angeles’s median household income of $80,366 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Los Angeles 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 Liberal Arts Programs

Other Programs Available in Los Angeles

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

Data verified: July 23, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024โ€“2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.