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Best Value Physics Doctor's Degree Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Physics Doctor's Degree Schools in California

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

11 Colleges
$21,393 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$81,190 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Physics Doctor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 3,218 degrees and certificates were awarded to physics students who went to a California college or university. This makes it the #40 most popular major in the state.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

The Best Value Physics Doctor's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 11 schools in California to see which doctor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for physics 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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California

Check out the physics doctor's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best Physics Doctor's Degree Schools

Our analysis found University of California - Santa Barbara to be the best value school for physics students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in California. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a very large student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at UCSB are $13,581 per year.

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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of California - San Diego is a great value for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. UCSD is a very large public school located in the city of La Jolla.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UCSD are $13,564 a year.

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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of California - Los Angeles is a great value for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UCLA are $13,036 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UCLA also is in the top 20% of our Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California ranking.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Los Angeles

Out of the 11 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Merced landed the # 4 spot on the list. UC Merced is a moderately-sized public school located in the rural area of Merced.

UC Merced graduate students pay an average of $13,207 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Merced

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Berkeley. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a fairly large student population.

UC Berkeley graduate students pay an average of $14,160 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list.

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University of California - Riverside ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the city of Riverside, UCR is a public school with a fairly large student population.

UCR graduate students pay an average of $13,467 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Riverside

With a ranking of #7, University of California - Irvine did quite well on this year’s best value schools for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a fairly large student population.

UC Irvine graduate students pay an average of $13,356 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Irvine

University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for physics students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. UC Santa Cruz is a large public school located in the city of Santa Cruz.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UC Santa Cruz are $13,895 a year.

Full Physics at University of California - Santa Cruz Report

University of California - Davis ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UC Davis are $13,608 a year.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Davis

#10

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Stanford University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California list. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at Stanford are $55,011 per year.

Stanford also took the #1 spot in our Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in California rankings.

Full Physics at Stanford University Report

Best Value Physics Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Physics Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 392
Oregon 187
Nevada 50
Hawaii 10
Alaska 4

One of 8 majors within the area of study, physics has other similar majors worth exploring.

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 11 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to A. T. Service.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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