2023 Best Physical Sciences Master's Degree Schools in California
Finding the Best Physical Sciences Master's Degree School for You
Physical Sciences is the #17 most popular major in California with 8,302 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Physical Sciences Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. Our analysis looked at 15 schools in California to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences 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 Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for physical sciences majors pursuing a master's degree.
Top 10 Best Physical Sciences Master's Degree Schools
Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for physical sciences students who want to pursue a master’s degree in California. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Santa Barbara. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a very large student population.
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Out of the 15 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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The excellent master’s degree programs at University of California - Los Angeles helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best physical sciences schools in California. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public college with a very large student population.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Diego State University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California list. SDSU is a fairly large public school located in the city of San Diego.
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California State University - Long Beach ranked #6 on this year’s Best Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public school with a very large student population.
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University of California - Irvine did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for physical sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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University of California - Davis came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in the suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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University of California - Santa Cruz came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. UC Santa Cruz is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Santa Cruz.
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University of California - Riverside landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree physical sciences programs. Located in the large city of Riverside, UCR is a public school with a very large student population.
Request InformationBest Physical Sciences Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Physical Sciences Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Washington | 1,936 |
| Oregon | 606 |
| Hawaii | 107 |
| Nevada | 315 |
| Alaska | 60 |
More Physical Sciences Rankings in California
Physical Sciences Related Rankings by Major
Physical Sciences Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | 21,239 |
| Physics | 13,674 |
| Geological & Earth Sciences | 7,821 |
| General Physical Sciences | 3,823 |
| Astronomy & Astrophysics | 1,375 |
| Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology | 1,140 |
| Materials Sciences | 658 |
| Other Physical Science | 538 |
| Physics and Astronomy | 38 |
Majors Similar to Physical Sciences
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Computer & Information Sciences | 254,454 |
| Engineering | 198,468 |
| Biological & Biomedical Sciences | 177,778 |
| Engineering Technologies | 85,188 |
| Mathematics & Statistics | 52,396 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 15 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 NASA.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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