2023 Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Astronomy & Astrophysics School for You
Out of all the majors we analyze each year, astronomy and astrophysics was ranked #221 in the country. In fact 1,375 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.
There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 7 schools in the Far Western US Region to see which programs offered the best value experiences for astronomy students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Best Far Western US Region Schools for Affordable Quality in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Our analysis found San Diego State University to be the best value school for astronomy and astrophysics students who want to pursue a degree in the Far Western US Region . Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public school with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SDSU are $20,016 per year.
Full Astronomy & Astrophysics at San Diego State University Report
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The excellent programs at University of Nevada - Las Vegas helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best astronomy and astrophysics schools in the Far Western US Region . UNLV is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Las Vegas.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UNLV are $24,828 a year.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Berkeley.
UC Berkeley undergraduate students pay an average of $43,980 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that astronomy majors at UC Berkeley take out is $18,967.
UC Berkeley did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list.
Full Astronomy & Astrophysics at University of California - Berkeley Report
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public school with a fairly large student population.
UW Seattle undergraduate students pay an average of $39,906 in tuition and fees each year.
In addition to its great value ranking, UW Seattle is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list.
Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. UCLA is a very large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UCLA are $43,012 a year.
In addition to its great value ranking, UCLA is in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list.
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University of California - Santa Cruz ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public college with a large student population.
UC Santa Cruz undergraduate students pay an average of $43,824 in tuition and fees each year. Astronomy majors at UC Santa Cruz take out an average of $20,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
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California Institute of Technology ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the medium-sized city of Pasadena, Caltech is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Caltech are $58,680 per year.
Caltech also claimed a spot on our Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.
Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at California Institute of Technology
Request InformationBest Astronomy & Astrophysics Colleges by State
Explore the best astronomy and astrophysics colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| California | 251 |
| Washington | 70 |
| Nevada | 3 |
| Hawaii | 19 |
| Alaska | 0 |
More Astronomy & Astrophysics Rankings in the Far Western US Region
Majors Related to Astronomy
One of 8 majors within the area of study, astronomy and astrophysics has other similar majors worth exploring.
Majors Similar to Astronomy
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | 21,239 |
| Physics | 13,674 |
| Geological & Earth Sciences | 7,821 |
| General Physical Sciences | 3,823 |
| Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology | 1,140 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 7 schools only.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.