Best Online Liberal Arts Programs in Milpitas, CA (2026)

Milpitas, California has 5 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs, with tuition ranging from $31,243 to $31,243 per year for indexed programs. Milpitas has a population of about 78,216. Median household income is $176,822 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 58.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area, the top-earning liberal arts-related role is Technical Writer at a median $140,700 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


Closest Liberal Arts Schools to Milpitas

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

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA 15.3 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 95.0
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 97%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $124,080
Avg net price $13,807/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 98%
  • Programs offered: 22

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Saint Mary's College of California

Moraga, CA 30.5 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 72.4
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 76%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $78,812
Avg net price $30,378/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 85%
  • Programs offered: 27

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#3

Golden Gate University

San Francisco, CA 37.1 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 62.7
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 46%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $87,434
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 16

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA 37.8 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 78.9
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 67%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $68,077
Avg net price $12,278/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 83%
  • Programs offered: 36

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#5

University of California-San Francisco

San Francisco, CA 38.5 miles from Milpitas
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
  • Accredited
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 9

Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA 38.8 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 70.2
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 77%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $89,812
Avg net price $41,431/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 82%
  • Programs offered: 42

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#7

University of the Pacific

Stockton, CA 49.3 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 75.4
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 75%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $78,445
Avg net price $25,447/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 89%
  • Programs offered: 32

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey

Monterey, CA 57.6 miles from Milpitas BOC Score 92.0
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 85%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $76,310
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 6

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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


Liberal Arts Wages Near Milpitas

Milpitas is part of the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area (BLS area code 41940). 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$117,620San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$106,540
Management Analyst$136,670San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$123,795
Technical Writer$140,700San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$127,446
News Analyst, Reporter, or Journalist$76,450San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$69,248
Editor$117,580San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$106,504
Training and Development Specialist$104,770San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$94,900
Human Resources Specialist$112,140San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$101,576

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.


Milpitas at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population78,216Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$176,822Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+58.6%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)110.4 (above U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024
Liberal Arts-related employment in Santa Clara County5,034 workers, 220 establishmentsBLS QCEW 2024 annual

Other Milpitas-Area Cities With Liberal Arts Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited liberal arts schools are near Milpitas, CA?

Accredited schools offering liberal arts programs near Milpitas 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 Milpitas?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying liberal arts-related roles near Milpitas are: Technical Writer ($140,700), Management Analyst ($136,670), Public Relations Specialist ($117,620). 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 Santa Clara instead of Milpitas?

Santa Clara, CA is 6.3 miles from Milpitas 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 Milpitas an affordable place to study liberal arts?

Milpitas’s median household income of $176,822 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Milpitas 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 Milpitas

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

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 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.