Best Exercise Physiologist programs in California, ranked by enrollment
Assess, plan, or implement fitness programs that include exercise or physical activities such as those designed to improve cardiorespiratory function, body composition, muscular strength, muscular endurance, or.
139 schools in California run programs that feed this job, graduating 3,338 people a year. The job pays a median of $62,440 in California across about 640 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in California that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
2 programs in California that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in California (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own California page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exercise Science and Kinesiologymain feeder CIP 31.0505In California → | 3,231 | 96.8% | 137 | $30,426 | $25,643 |
| 2 | Exercise Physiology and Kinesiologymain feeder CIP 26.0908In California → | 107 | 3.2% | 5 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
Top 25 schools in California
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 21 of the 139 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Baptist University Riverside, CA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 203 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $35,328 | 62% | $26,940 | 85% |
| 2 | Fresno City College Fresno, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 109 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 24% | — | — |
| 3 | Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 94 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 77% | $48,795 | 84% |
| 4 | Mt San Antonio College Walnut, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 81 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $19,869 | 45% | — | — |
| 5 | California State University - Chico Chico, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 77 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $28,236 | 63% | — | 93% |
| 6 | Pasadena City College Pasadena, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 75 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 48% | — | — |
| 7 | Long Beach City College Long Beach, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 71 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 30% | — | — |
| 8 | Citrus College Glendora, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 70 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 41% | — | — |
| 9 | University of La Verne La Verne, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 67 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 63% | $45,461 | 71% |
| 10 | California State University - Fresno Fresno, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 59 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $26,931 | 57% | — | 95% |
| 11 | Pepperdine University Malibu, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 57 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $34,388 | 83% | $41,986 | 63% |
| 12 | Mt San Jacinto Community College District San Jacinto, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 56 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 36% | — | — |
| 13 | Cypress College Cypress, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 55 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 37% | — | — |
| 14 | University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 55 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $26,496 | 70% | $37,121 | 62% |
| 15 | East Los Angeles College Monterey Park, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 54 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 37% | — | — |
| 16 | Hartnell College Salinas, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 51 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 40% | — | — |
| 17 | Lionel University Carpinteria, CA Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 50 | Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology | — | 67% | $28,929 | — |
| 18 | Vanguard University of Southern California Costa Mesa, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 50 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 57% | $18,716 | 62% |
| 19 | Azusa Pacific University Azusa, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 47 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $22,233 | 62% | $20,686 | 88% |
| 20 | Westmont College Santa Barbara, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 45 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $27,708 | 70% | $28,035 | 77% |
| 21 | Riverside City College Riverside, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 43 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $25,516 | 37% | — | — |
| 22 | Chaffey College Rancho Cucamonga, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 42 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 36% | — | — |
| 23 | Moorpark College Moorpark, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 41 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | — | 44% | — | — |
| 24 | California Lutheran University Thousand Oaks, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 40 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $33,818 | 70% | $23,129 | 76% |
| 25 | California State University - Stanislaus Turlock, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 40 | Exercise Science and Kinesiology | $25,414 | 53% | — | 98% |
All 139 schools in California
Every school in California with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California Baptist University | Riverside | Private not-for-profit | 203 | 2 |
| Fresno City College | Fresno | Public | 109 | 1 |
| Point Loma Nazarene University | San Diego | Private not-for-profit | 94 | 1 |
| Mt San Antonio College | Walnut | Public | 81 | 1 |
| California State University - Chico | Chico | Public | 77 | 1 |
| Pasadena City College | Pasadena | Public | 75 | 1 |
| Long Beach City College | Long Beach | Public | 71 | 1 |
| Citrus College | Glendora | Public | 70 | 1 |
| University of La Verne | La Verne | Private not-for-profit | 67 | 1 |
| California State University - Fresno | Fresno | Public | 59 | 1 |
| Pepperdine University | Malibu | Private not-for-profit | 57 | 1 |
| Mt San Jacinto Community College District | San Jacinto | Public | 56 | 1 |
| Cypress College | Cypress | Public | 55 | 1 |
| University of San Francisco | San Francisco | Private not-for-profit | 55 | 1 |
| East Los Angeles College | Monterey Park | Public | 54 | 1 |
What exercise physiologists earn in California
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $59,460. California pays above the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in California
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Exercise Physiologists page.
How to become a Exercise Physiologist
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in California
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 3 majors mapped to Exercise Physiologists3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 26.0908Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology
- 31.0505Exercise Science and Kinesiology
- 51.2311Kinesiotherapy/Kinesiotherapist
Common questions
Answers for people weighing exercise physiologists programs in California.
What degree do you need to become an Exercise Physiologist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Exercise Science and Kinesiology, which awarded 3,231 degrees in California in 2024-25, 96.8% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming an Exercise Physiologist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Sports, Physiology. Together they graduate about 3,338 people a year in California.
How much do exercise physiologists earn in California?+
The median is $62,440 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 5.0% above the U.S. median of $59,460. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for exercise physiologists growing?+
BLS projects a +9.5% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 1,700 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in California?+
139 institutions in California reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do exercise physiologists work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Exercise Specialist, Exercise Physiologist, Clinical Exercise Physiologist, Lifestyle and Weight Management Consultant among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 29-1128.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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