2023 Best Physics Bachelor's Degree Schools
Finding the Best Physics Bachelor's Degree School for You
In 2020-2021, 13,674 people earned a degree or certificate in physics, making the major the #69 most popular in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Physics Bachelor's Degree Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 241 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best bachelor's degree programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Physics Bachelor's Degree Colleges.
Top 25 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in Physics
Our 2023 rankings named Stanford University the best school in the United States for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Illinois Institute of Technology is a great place for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Illinois Tech is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Northwestern University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Evanston.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Rochester Institute of Technology is a great place for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. RIT is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Rochester.
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University of Delaware ranked #6 on this year’s Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. UD is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Newark.
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Northeastern University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Boston, Northeastern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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University of Arizona landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree physics programs. Located in the large city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public college with a very large student population.
While working on their Bachelor's Degree, physics majors at University of Arizona accumulate an average of around $24,186 in student debt.
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With a ranking of #9, Williams College did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the fringe town of Williamstown, Williams is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
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University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for physics students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. UCSB is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara.
The average amount in student loans that physics majors at UCSB take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $17,121.
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With a ranking of #11, Wake Forest University did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Wake Forest University is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Winston-Salem.
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With a ranking of #12, University of Wisconsin - River Falls did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. UW - River Falls is a medium-sized public school located in the distant town of River Falls.
While working on their Bachelor's Degree, physics majors at UW - River Falls accumulate an average of around $25,603 in student debt.
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College of the Holy Cross landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree physics programs. Located in the city of Worcester, Holy Cross is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
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University of Minnesota - Twin Cities came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public school with a fairly large student population.
On average, physics graduates from UMN Twin Cities take out $23,998 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
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University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree physics programs. UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the city of Madison.
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Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for physics students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #16 on the list. Embry-Riddle Prescott is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Prescott.
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With a ranking of #17, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Champaign.
For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $674.
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With a ranking of #18, Iowa State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Iowa State is a fairly large public school located in the city of Ames.
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University of Maryland - College Park did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for physics students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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Cornell University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for physics students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list. Cornell is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Ithaca.
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With a ranking of #21, Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Purdue is a fairly large public school located in the city of West Lafayette.
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Union College New York landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree physics programs. Union College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Schenectady.
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The University of Texas at Austin landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree physics programs. UT Austin is a very large public school located in the large city of Austin.
The average amount in student loans that physics majors at UT Austin take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $22,862. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $193, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of Wyoming ranked #24 on this year’s Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the town of Laramie, UW is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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St Olaf College ranked #25 on this year’s Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. St. Olaf is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Northfield.
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Honorable Mentions
Here are some additional great schools for Physics students that almost earned our Best Physics Bachelor's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 37 | Pacific Lutheran University | Tacoma, WA |
| 38 | Colorado State University - Fort Collins | Fort Collins, CO |
| 39 | Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach | Daytona Beach, FL |
| 40 | University of North Alabama | Florence, AL |
| 41 | Temple University | Philadelphia, PA |
| 42 | University of Nevada - Reno | Reno, NV |
| 43 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | Troy, NY |
| 44 | Millersville University of Pennsylvania | Millersville, PA |
| 45 | University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville, VA |
| 46 | Virginia Tech | Blacksburg, VA |
| 47 | University of California - Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA |
| 48 | University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame, IN |
Physics by Region
View the Best Physics Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Physics Rankings
Physics Related Rankings by Major
Physics is one of 8 different types of programs to choose from.
Majors Similar to Physics
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | 21,239 |
| Geological & Earth Sciences | 7,821 |
| General Physical Sciences | 3,823 |
| Astronomy & Astrophysics | 1,375 |
| Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology | 1,140 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- 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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to A. T. Service.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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