San Diego City Guide
ABA Programs in San Diego
Two of the largest online ABA master's programs in the United States are headquartered in San Diego County, which means the metro exports behavior analysis training far more than it teaches it locally. This guide covers the ABA programs in San Diego, the campus that quietly closed, and the arithmetic problem a $57,660 median creates against housing that costs 79.3% more than the national average.
Key Takeaways
- 01National University and Alliant International University are both headquartered in San Diego and both run 30-credit online ABA master's. Between them they are among the largest producers of ABA degrees in the country.
- 02There is no longer a Chicago School campus in San Diego. Its current locations are Online, Anaheim, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Third-party directories still list a San Diego campus; the university's own location page does not.
- 03CSU San Marcos runs an ABA Certificate of Advanced Study at $349 per unit — 21 units on the BCBA track, 18 on the BCaBA track — for people who already hold a qualifying master's.
- 04California asks for no state license. Your BCBA is the credential, and San Diego Regional Center vendorization is what actually decides who can bill for publicly funded services in San Diego and Imperial counties.
- 05The arithmetic here is difficult. The metro median is $57,660, below the national median, while housing runs 79.3% above the national average. Cost-adjusted, the median is worth about $51,528 — third-worst of the fifty metros on this site, ahead of only Los Angeles and Miami.
San Diego's relationship with ABA education is unusual: the metro is a major producer of the degree and a minor consumer of it. National University, headquartered here, runs a 30-credit M.S. in Applied Behavioral Analysis with monthly start dates. Alliant International University, also headquartered here, runs a 30-credit M.S. online through its California School of Education with three intakes a year. Both serve students nationwide rather than a local cohort.
One correction worth making, because directory sites repeat it. The Chicago School no longer operates a San Diego campus. Its own locations page lists Online, Anaheim, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Federal completions data still shows a San Diego campus awarding ABA degrees, because that data lags; the university's current page is the one to believe.
The locally distinctive option is CSU San Marcos's ABA Certificate of Advanced Study, which is not a degree. It runs the BACB coursework sequence alone at $349 per unit through Extended Learning, in two tracks — 21 units toward BCBA eligibility, 18 toward BCaBA. If you already hold a qualifying master's, it is the cheapest route in Southern California.
Then the part that is hard to say kindly. San Diego pays a median below the national one and carries housing costs 79.3% above the national average. Cost-adjusted, its median is worth about $51,528 — the third-lowest real figure among the fifty metros on this site, ahead of only Los Angeles and Miami. The metro has a great deal going for it; pay relative to cost is not on the list.
Metro scope
Includes: San Diego, Chula Vista, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Escondido, El Cajon, San Marcos, La Mesa. The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro, which is San Diego County — the city and its eastern suburbs, the South Bay down to the border, and North County from Oceanside and Carlsbad inland through San Marcos and Escondido.
Note: No state line, but an international one. California does not license behavior analysts: no board, no application, no renewal cycle, and your BCBA is the credential that carries practice authority, with Senate Bill 946 tying insurance coverage for behavioral health treatment of autism to that certification. Practice is organized instead through the San Diego Regional Center, which coordinates developmental disability services for San Diego and Imperial counties. The border itself is a real feature of practice here: cross-border families, a large Spanish-speaking population, and military families moving on assignment cycles all shape caseload continuity in ways that are unusual elsewhere.
The programs
Every one of the BCBA programs in San Diego and the county
3 programs
National University — M.S. in Applied Behavioral Analysis
San Diego headquarters; delivered online · San Diego, CA · No commute; monthly cohort starts
- Tuition
- $464 per credit hour
- Length
- 30 semester credit hours across 10 courses, about 18 months
- Format
- Fully online, with on-campus delivery at selected California locations
- Accreditation
- BCBA Pathway 2 coursework; National University
- Part-time
- Monthly start dates built around working students
- A San Diego institution, so faculty and advising sit inside the California regional center and school-district context
- Monthly start dates, which means you are never more than four weeks from beginning
- Thirty credits across ten courses, among the shortest qualifying routes in the state
- The program states that ABAI "has verified the following courses in the program as meeting the coursework requirements for eligibility to take the BCBA or BCaBA examination"
- Reported a 35% first-attempt BCBA pass rate in the BACB 2025 report (424 candidates), well below the 51% national rate; worth raising with the program directly
Alliant International University — M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis
San Diego headquarters; delivered online · San Diego, CA · No commute; online delivery
- Tuition
- Published per-unit rates are on Alliant's tuition page; confirm the current School of Education rate
- Length
- 30 credits, a minimum of 52 weeks
- Format
- 100% online
- Accreditation
- BCBA Pathway 2 coursework; Alliant California School of Education
- Part-time
- Three intakes a year, in August, January and May
- Alliant is headquartered in San Diego and its California School of Education runs the program
- Thirty credits and a 52-week minimum, about as short as a qualifying master's gets
- Alliant states the program "meets the behavior-analytic coursework requirements for those pursuing the BCBA pathway 2 eligibility route"
- Three intakes a year rather than one annual cohort
- Delivery is online despite the local headquarters — do not expect a San Diego classroom
California State University San Marcos — ABA Certificate of Advanced Study
San Marcos, North County · San Marcos, CA · No commute; online through CSUSM Extended Learning
- Tuition
- $349 per credit hour through Extended Learning
- Length
- 21 units on the BCBA track, 18 on the BCaBA track
- Format
- Fully online
- Accreditation
- BACB-approved coursework sequence; CSUSM School of Education
- Part-time
- Designed for working professionals adding coursework to an existing degree
- The only public-university ABA offering based inside San Diego County
- Two tracks, one toward BCBA eligibility and one toward BCaBA
- At $349 per unit it is the cheapest coursework sequence in Southern California
- This is a certificate, not a degree: it satisfies the BCBA coursework requirement and not the degree requirement, so you need a qualifying master's already
- Reported a 57% first-attempt BCBA pass rate in the BACB 2025 report
Cost of living
What it costs to live in San Diego while you study
San Diego has the cost structure of a coastal California metro and the pay of an ordinary one, which is the central financial fact about working here. Housing runs 79.3% above the national average on the BEA index and the whole basket 11.9% above, while the metro median wage for this occupation sits below the national median. The compensating factors are real but non-financial: climate, a large and stable services market, and a military and border population that makes the work varied.
Housing, 2024
179.3
79.3% above the national average
Everything, 2024
111.9
11.9% above the national average
Metro median pay covers
$51,528
of national-average spending
Housing runs 79.3% above the national average, which is the single biggest reason the overall cost of living lands where it does.
Both figures are BEA Regional Price Parities for San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA, 2024, where the national average is 100. Housing is the services-housing component; the second figure is the whole basket.
Housing price level
79.3% above the national average
BEA Regional Price Parity for housing, 2024
All-items price level
11.9% above the national average
BEA Regional Price Parity, all items, 2024
Transit
MTS Trolley and bus, NCTD Coaster and Sprinter
Useful along the Blue, Orange and Green lines; North County and East County caseloads are a car proposition
Car
Required for most fieldwork
San Diego Regional Center's catchment includes Imperial County as well as San Diego
Tuition, CSU San Marcos certificate
$349 per credit hour
Extended Learning rate; 21 units on the BCBA track
Tuition, National University M.S.
$464 per credit hour
30 semester credit hours across 10 courses
Clinical fieldwork
BCBA certification in San Diego: where county students do supervised fieldwork
San Diego County has a deep clinical market and a thin academic one. Rady Children's is one of the largest pediatric hospitals in the country, the San Diego Regional Center funds services across two counties, and the school districts are large. What the metro does not have is a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities — California's sit at UCLA, USC and UC Davis — though UC San Diego does run a LEND interdisciplinary training program.
San Diego Regional Center
San Diego Regional Center coordinates developmental disability services for San Diego and Imperial counties. Its vendorized providers carry most of the publicly funded caseload in the county.
Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego
Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego is the region's pediatric hospital and the most competitive clinical setting in the metro for developmental and behavioral work.
UC San Diego LEND
UC San Diego's LEND program runs federally funded interdisciplinary training in neurodevelopmental disabilities, the metro's one research-affiliated training route.
San Diego Unified and county districts
San Diego Unified is one of California's largest districts, and the county's many smaller districts — Poway, Chula Vista, Vista, Escondido — host school-based placements across North, South and East County.
Military and border caseloads
The county's large military population and its border location give it caseload features that are unusual elsewhere: assignment-cycle turnover, TRICARE coverage, and a substantial cross-border and Spanish-speaking family population.
Hiring market
Major ABA employers across San Diego County
San Diego's employer market splits three ways: Rady Children's at the clinical top, regional-center-vendorized agencies in the middle, and a large set of school districts underneath. The distinctive fourth stream is TRICARE. The county's military population means a meaningful share of ABA services are delivered under the military health benefit, whose authorization and reporting rules differ from both Medi-Cal and commercial plans — worth learning early if you intend to practice here.
San Diego Regional Center
Regional center for developmental disabilities
Funds and coordinates services across San Diego and Imperial counties. Rarely the direct employer of behavior analysts, but the body whose vendorization decisions define the provider market.
Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego
Pediatric hospital
One of the largest pediatric hospitals in the country and the region's clinical anchor for developmental and behavioral services.
San Diego Unified School District
Public school district
One of California's largest districts, employing behavior specialists across special education services, with a school calendar and CalSTRS or CalPERS membership.
UC San Diego Health
Academic medical center
The county's academic health system and the home of its LEND training program, offering the research-affiliated end of local practice.
TRICARE-funded ABA providers
Military health benefit providers
Agencies serving military families under the Autism Care Demonstration. A substantial share of San Diego County caseloads, with authorization and outcome-reporting rules that differ from commercial and Medi-Cal work.
Side by side
Comparing the 3 San Diego programs
The same programs as above, set against each other on the things that decide which one you apply to: how it is delivered, how long it runs, what it costs, and whether it asks for the GRE.
| Program | Format | Length | Tuition | GRE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National University — M.S. in Applied Behavioral Analysis San Diego, CA | Fully online, with on-campus delivery at selected California locations | 30 semester credit hours across 10 courses, about 18 months | $464 per credit hour | Not required |
| Alliant International University — M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis San Diego, CA | 100% online | 30 credits, a minimum of 52 weeks | Published per-unit rates are on Alliant's tuition page; confirm the current School of Education rate | Not required |
| California State University San Marcos — ABA Certificate of Advanced Study San Marcos, CA | Fully online | 21 units on the BCBA track, 18 on the BCaBA track | $349 per credit hour through Extended Learning | Not required |
Metro pay
BCBA salary in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro
Metro median
$57,660
National median
$59,350
10th percentile
$45,910
90th percentile
$103,560
BLS metro median, May 2025
$57,660
$1,690 below the national median
Cost of living, 2024
111.9
11.9% above the national average
Worth nationally
$51,528
the same pay in national-average dollars
Because prices run 11.9% above the national average, $57,660 here goes about as far as $51,528 would nationally.
BLS does not publish a separate occupation for behavior analysts. This is the May 2025 median for SOC 21-1018 (Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors), the category BCBAs are counted in, which also contains counseling roles that typically pay less. Read it as a floor for the metro, not as BCBA pay. Wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA. Cost of living is the BEA Regional Price Parity for the metro, all items, 2024, where the national average is 100. It is the most recent year BEA publishes, so it sits one year behind the wage figure. Prices: BEA Regional Price Parities.
The published figure for this metro is $57,660, the BLS OEWS May 2025 median for SOC 21-1018, Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors, across the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro. That is $1,690 below the national median of $59,350 for the same code. BLS publishes no separate occupation for behavior analysts, and SOC 21-1018 also contains counseling roles requiring neither a master's nor board certification, so read $57,660 as a floor rather than as BCBA pay.
The 10th percentile is $45,910 — relatively high, which reflects California wage floors — and the 90th is $103,560. The upper end is healthy and comparable to Los Angeles. The problem is what happens when you adjust. Prices across the metro run 11.9% above the national average, so $57,660 here goes about as far as $51,528 would nationally. That is the third-lowest cost-adjusted figure of the fifty metros on this site; only Los Angeles ($45,695) and Miami ($50,166) come out worse. Housing alone runs 79.3% above the national average.
Two things soften that. The 90th percentile survives the adjustment much better than the median does, so the calculation improves substantially with experience. And the county's TRICARE caseload, funded through the military health benefit, adds a payer that behaves differently from Medi-Cal and commercial plans and is a genuine source of stable work. But the headline stands: San Diego is an expensive place to be paid an average wage. For national context see our BCBA salary guide.
Other cities
Other cities in California
We also cover 6 other metros in California. If you can commute, comparing them is worth ten minutes — the program list changes, but so does the fieldwork market, and that is the half your location actually constrains.
Nearby metros
If you are flexible on metro
The comparisons that matter are the two California metros within a two-hour drive and the one that fixes the cost problem. Riverside is cheaper on housing and trains nobody; Fresno is the only California metro in this guide where housing costs less than the national average.
ABA Programs in Riverside
The Inland Empire: no local program at all, but housing at a far lower premium and a wide pay distribution.
ABA Programs in Los Angeles
Two hours north, with the state's deepest program market and the worst cost-adjusted pay in this guide.
ABA Programs in California
The full state picture: every California program, why the state licenses nobody, and how SB 946 works.
Common questions
Frequently Asked Questions
01How many ABA programs are in San Diego?+
02Does The Chicago School still have a San Diego campus?+
03Do I need a license to practice ABA in San Diego?+
04How much do BCBAs make in San Diego?+
05Where do San Diego ABA students do supervised fieldwork?+
06Is San Diego a good place to start a BCBA career?+
Sources
- National University, M.S. in Applied Behavioral Analysis
- Alliant International University, M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis
- CSU San Marcos, ABA Certificate of Advanced Study
- The Chicago School, campus locations
- BACB, U.S. Licensure of Behavior Analysts by State
- BLS OEWS May 2025, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA (SOC 21-1018)
- UC San Diego LEND, Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute
- ABAI Accredited Programs Directory