San Diego, CA (population: 1,309,749) has nine CPA schools within its city limits. University of San Diego, the highest ranked school in the city with a CPA program, has a total student population of 7,868. It is the 155th highest ranked school in the USA and the 18th highest in the state of California (#1 is University of California-Los Angeles).
CPA students from San Diego schools who go on to become certified public accountants, accountants, finance accountants, tax accountants, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 1,106,980 people working as accountants and auditors alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $67,430. Also, Tax examiners, collectors, and revenue agents make on average $53,800 per year and there are about 69,500 of them employed in the US today.
San Diego lies in San Diego county, which is one of the 57 counties in California. Overall, the San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos area has 1,279,330 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 1% unemployment rate, $23/hr average worker wage, and a $48,860 average annual salary.
Of the 9 CPA schools in San Diego, only 4 have a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, California College-San Diego comes out as the most expensive ($37,960/yr) for CPA students, with San Diego City College as the lowest, reported at only $6,682/yr.
| Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from San Diego |
| Chula Vista | CA | 226,606 | 2 | 21.0599 | 146 | 13.7 miles |
| Encinitas | CA | 61,488 | 0 | - | 0 | 18.0 miles |
| San Marcos | CA | 82,614 | 4 | 36.7693 | 363 | 22.9 miles |
| Carlsbad | CA | 99,613 | 3 | 21.734 | 46 | 23.1 miles |
| Escondido | CA | 139,583 | 1 | 0.0163751 | 0 | 23.2 miles |
| Temecula | CA | 104,516 | 3 | 32.0583 | 15 | 47.7 miles |
| Laguna Niguel | CA | 65,471 | 0 | - | 0 | 59.4 miles |
| Lake Elsinore | CA | 56,703 | 0 | - | 0 | 60.4 miles |
| Aliso Viejo | CA | 42,862 | 1 | 75.2668 | 4 | 62.7 miles |
| Mission Viejo | CA | 95,388 | 1 | 19.6994 | 137 | 62.7 miles |
| Laguna Beach | CA | - | 1 | 20.4608 | 2 | 62.9 miles |
| Newport Beach | CA | 80,777 | 1 | 0.80626 | 0 | 69.6 miles |
| Costa Mesa | CA | 113,091 | 7 | 22.8122 | 265 | 74.3 miles |
| Tustin | CA | 74,313 | 0 | - | 0 | 74.5 miles |
| Palm Desert | CA | 52,240 | 2 | 19.2411 | 98 | 77.3 miles |
| Fountain Valley | CA | 56,133 | 3 | 26.6774 | 70 | 77.9 miles |
| Riverside | CA | 302,653 | 8 | 32.5108 | 359 | 79.6 miles |
| Cathedral City | CA | 53,114 | 0 | - | 0 | 80.8 miles |
| Garden Grove | CA | 167,800 | 4 | 26.4852 | 22 | 82.2 miles |
| Anaheim | CA | 342,336 | 9 | 24.4064 | 97 | 82.8 miles |
| Coachella | CA | 42,148 | 1 | 32.7647 | 6 | 83.1 miles |
| Yorba Linda | CA | 67,194 | 0 | - | 0 | 83.1 miles |
| Fullerton | CA | 133,165 | 6 | 21.8966 | 252 | 87.0 miles |
| Cypress | CA | 47,588 | 2 | 8.65396 | 110 | 87.1 miles |
| Chino Hills | CA | 74,322 | 0 | - | 0 | 87.6 miles |
| Chino | CA | 84,585 | 0 | - | 0 | 88.9 miles |
| Long Beach | CA | 464,505 | 6 | 26.5161 | 271 | 89.8 miles |
| Ontario | CA | 174,731 | 7 | 23.7233 | 124 | 90.0 miles |
| Cerritos | CA | 51,327 | 3 | 18.7768 | 18 | 90.9 miles |
| Diamond Bar | CA | 57,662 | 0 | - | 0 | 91.0 miles |