El Cajon, California has 5 accredited schools offering psychology programs, with tuition ranging from $1,332 to $11,543 per year for indexed programs. El Cajon has a population of about 104,909. Median household income is $66,478 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 22.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area, the top-earning psychology-related role is School Psychologist at a median $131,070 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Psychology Schools to El Cajon
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer psychology programs near El Cajon, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from El Cajon 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 El Cajon.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
34%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$40,309
Avg net price
$5,311/yr
TuitionIn‑state$1,332
Out‑of‑state$10,628
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
30%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$39,607
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all California schools on the California psychology page.
Psychology Wages Near El Cajon
El Cajon is part of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area (BLS area code 41740). 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) |
|---|
| Clinical and Counseling Psychologist | $72,090 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $64,424 |
| Industrial-Organizational Psychologist | N/A | CA statewide | – |
| School Psychologist | $131,070 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $117,131 |
| Educational and Career Counselor | $83,520 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $74,638 |
| Marriage and Family Therapist | $49,610 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $44,334 |
| Substance Abuse and Mental Health Counselor | $57,660 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $51,528 |
| Healthcare Social Worker | $82,630 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $73,843 |
| Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker | $75,570 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $67,534 |
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.
El Cajon at a Glance
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|
| Population | 104,909 | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income | $66,478 | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ | 22.2% | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) | 111.9 (above U.S. average) | BEA RPP 2024 |
| Psychology-related employment in San Diego County | 87,378 workers, 38,274 establishments | BLS QCEW 2024 annual |
Other El Cajon-Area Cities With Psychology Programs
- Santee, CA – 4.0 mi away (57,834 pop)
- La Mesa, CA – 4.1 mi away (59,948 pop)
- Lemon Grove, CA – 6.4 mi away (26,860 pop)
- San Diego, CA – 9.6 mi away (3,181,172 pop)
- National City, CA – 12.4 mi away (61,147 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited psychology schools are near El Cajon, CA?
Accredited schools offering psychology programs near El Cajon 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 psychology roles near El Cajon?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying psychology-related roles near El Cajon are: School Psychologist ($131,070), Educational and Career Counselor ($83,520), Healthcare Social Worker ($82,630). 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 Santee instead of El Cajon?
Santee, CA is 4.0 miles from El Cajon and has its own set of local psychology programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is El Cajon an affordable place to study psychology?
El Cajon’s median household income of $66,478 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in El Cajon 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 Psychology Programs
Other Programs Available in El Cajon
Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for El Cajon:
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- Accounting programs in El Cajon, CA
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- Social Work programs in El Cajon, CA
- Counseling programs in El Cajon, CA
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.
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