2023 Best Value Physics Schools in the Far Western US Region
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Physics School for You
Physics is the #69 most popular major in the country with 13,674 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Physics Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 37 schools in the Far Western US Region to see which 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.
Top 10 Best Physics Schools
Our 2023 rankings named San Diego State University the best value school in the Far Western US Region for physics students. SDSU is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Diego.
SDSU undergraduate students pay an average of $20,016 in tuition and fees each year.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Long Beach. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSULB are $18,726 per year. After completing their degree, physics graduates from CSULB carry an average student debtload of $21,750.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Nevada - Reno is a great value for physics students. UNR is a very large public school located in the large city of Reno.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UNR are $24,827 per year. While working on their degree, physics majors at UNR accumulate an average of around $22,000 in student debt.
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The excellent programs at California State University - Sacramento helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best physics schools in the Far Western US Region . Sac State is a very large public school located in the city of Sacramento.
Sac State undergraduate students pay an average of $19,272 in tuition and fees each year. On average, physics graduates from Sac State take out $15,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fullerton. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Physics Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public college with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal State Fullerton are $18,856 per year.
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With a ranking of #6, Eastern Washington University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for physics students. EWU is a large public school located in the fringe town of Cheney.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at EWU are $25,748 a year.
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Stanford University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Stanford are $56,169 per year.
Stanford not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Physics Schools in the Far Western US Region list.
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California State University - Los Angeles landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value physics programs. Cal State LA is a very large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.
Cal State LA undergraduate students pay an average of $18,665 in tuition and fees each year.
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California State Polytechnic University - Pomona landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value physics programs. Cal Poly Pomona is a very large public school located in the suburb of Pomona.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Cal Poly Pomona are $19,319 a year. The average amount in student loans that physics majors at Cal Poly Pomona take out is $17,384.
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University of Nevada - Las Vegas did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for physics students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Las Vegas, UNLV is a public college with a fairly large student population.
UNLV undergraduate students pay an average of $24,828 in tuition and fees each year.
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Request InformationBest Physics Colleges by State
Explore the best physics colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| California | 3,218 |
| Washington | 392 |
| Oregon | 187 |
| Nevada | 50 |
| Hawaii | 10 |
| Alaska | 4 |
More Physics Rankings in the Far Western US Region
Physics Related Majors for Physics
One of 8 majors within the area of study, physics has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Majors Related 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.
- 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.