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Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools

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2023 Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools

234 Colleges
$70,619 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree School for You

Physical Sciences is the #19 most popular major in the country with 50,306 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 234 schools in the United States to see which ones were the most popular doctor's degree programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Physical Sciences program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for physical sciences majors pursuing a doctor's degree.

Our analysis found University of California - Berkeley to be the most popular school for physical sciences students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in the United States. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 124 students majoring in physical sciences at UC Berkeley, 73% are male and 27% are female.

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#2

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.

Women make up 29% of the physical sciences majors at the school.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Stanford University

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a great place for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. UW Seattle is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Seattle.

About 40% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 60% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Washington - Seattle Campus

Out of the 234 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Massachusetts Institute of Technology landed the # 4 spot on the list. MIT is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge.

About 32% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 68% are male.

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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a great place for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 36% of the physical sciences majors at the school.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

University of California - San Diego did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. UCSD is a fairly large public school located in the city of La Jolla.

About 35% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 65% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - San Diego

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 49% of the physical sciences majors at the school.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 89 students majoring in physical sciences at UW - Madison, 67% are male and 33% are female.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Wisconsin - Madison

With a ranking of #9, Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Texas A&M College Station is a very large public school located in the midsize city of College Station.

Of the 88 students majoring in physical sciences at Texas A&M College Station, 69% are male and 31% are female.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Texas A&M University - College Station

#10

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physical sciences programs. Located in the small city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public college with a very large student population.

About 35% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 65% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Purdue University - Main Campus

University of California - Los Angeles did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.

About 34% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 66% are male.

Full Physical Sciences at University of California - Los Angeles Report

#12

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Harvard University landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physical sciences programs. Located in the city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

About 32% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 68% are male.

Full Physical Sciences at Harvard University Report

#13

University of Arizona

Tucson, AZ

With a ranking of #13, University of Arizona did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. University of Arizona is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Tucson.

Of the 77 students majoring in physical sciences at University of Arizona, 81% are male and 19% are female.

Full Physical Sciences at University of Arizona Report

University of Colorado Boulder came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. CU - Boulder is a very large public school located in the city of Boulder.

About 26% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 74% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Colorado Boulder

#15

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

Michigan State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Michigan State is a fairly large public school located in the city of East Lansing.

Of the 73 students majoring in physical sciences at Michigan State, 66% are male and 34% are female.

Full Physical Sciences at Michigan State University Report

Ohio State University - Main Campus ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 41% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 59% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Ohio State University - Main Campus

#15

University of Houston

Houston, TX

University of Houston ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. UH is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Houston.

About 29% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 71% are male.

Full Physical Sciences at University of Houston Report

#18

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

University of Chicago landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physical sciences programs. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

About 19% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 81% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Chicago

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities ranked #19 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. UMN Twin Cities is a very large public school located in the city of Minneapolis.

Of the 65 students majoring in physical sciences at UMN Twin Cities, 69% are male and 31% are female.

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California Institute of Technology landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physical sciences programs. Caltech is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Pasadena.

Of the 64 students majoring in physical sciences at Caltech, 69% are male and 31% are female.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at California Institute of Technology

#21

Yale University

New Haven, CT

Yale University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Women make up 41% of the physical sciences majors at the school.

Read More…

#22

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

With a ranking of #22, Northwestern University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

About 32% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 68% are male.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Northwestern University

Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #22 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.

Of the 59 students majoring in physical sciences at Columbia, 69% are male and 31% are female.

Full Physical Sciences at Columbia University in the City of New York Report

The University of Texas at Austin did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #22 on the list. Located in the city of Austin, UT Austin is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 36% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 64% are male.

Read More…

University of Southern California came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

Of the 58 students majoring in physical sciences at USC, 66% are male and 34% are female.

Read More…

#26

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY
#31

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ
#33

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL
#33

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
37 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
38 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA
38 Colorado State University - Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO
40 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
41 University of Delaware Newark, DE
41 Duke University Durham, NC
43 University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN
43 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA
43 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
43 The Graduate Center, CUNY New York, NY

Physical Sciences by Region

View the Most Popular Physical Sciences Doctor'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

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

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 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 NASA.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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