2023 Most Popular Physical Sciences Master's Degree Schools
Finding the Best Physical Sciences Master'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.
The Most Popular Physical Sciences Master's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 364 schools in the United States to see which master's degree programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Physical Sciences program at each school on the list.
2023 Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the most popular for physical sciences majors pursuing a master's degree.
Top 25 Most Popular Schools for a Master's in Physical Sciences
Our analysis found Johns Hopkins University to be the most popular school for physical sciences students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Baltimore.
About 63% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 37% are male.
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Out of the 364 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Columbia University in the City of New York landed the # 2 spot on the list. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.
Of the 107 students majoring in physical sciences at Columbia, 53% are male and 47% are female.
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The in-demand master’s degree programs at University of Arizona helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular physical sciences schools in the United States. University of Arizona is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Tucson.
Women make up 34% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Oregon is a great place for physical sciences students working on their master’s degree. UO is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Eugene.
Women make up 34% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Mississippi State University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Mississippi State is a fairly large public school located in the remote town of Mississippi State.
Women make up 48% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
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University of California - San Diego ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. UCSD is a fairly large public school located in the city of La Jolla.
Of the 95 students majoring in physical sciences at UCSD, 41% are male and 59% are female.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - San Diego
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With a ranking of #7, University of Washington - Seattle Campus did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their master’s degree. UW Seattle is a fairly large public school located in the city of Seattle.
Of the 93 students majoring in physical sciences at UW Seattle, 53% are male and 47% are female.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
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Princeton University ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Princeton is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Princeton.
About 32% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 68% are male.
Full Physical Sciences at Princeton University Report
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With a ranking of #9, Florida State University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their master’s degree. Florida State is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Tallahassee.
Of the 89 students majoring in physical sciences at Florida State, 60% are male and 40% are female.
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With a ranking of #10, University of California - Los Angeles did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public college with a very large student population.
Women make up 27% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - Los Angeles
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University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a fairly large student population.
About 48% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 52% are male.
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University of Chicago landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree physical sciences programs. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.
Women make up 37% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
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With a ranking of #13, University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physical sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Of the 85 students majoring in physical sciences at UW - Madison, 62% are male and 38% are female.
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University of Rochester did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. University of Rochester is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Rochester.
Of the 83 students majoring in physical sciences at University of Rochester, 67% are male and 33% are female.
Full Physical Sciences at University of Rochester Report
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New York University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree physical sciences programs. Located in the large city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Of the 82 students majoring in physical sciences at NYU, 70% are male and 30% are female.
Full Physical Sciences at New York University Report
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Texas A&M University - College Station landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree physical sciences programs. Texas A&M College Station is a very large public school located in the city of College Station.
Of the 81 students majoring in physical sciences at Texas A&M College Station, 60% are male and 40% are female.
Full Physical Sciences at Texas A&M University - College Station Report
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University of California - Berkeley did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #17 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Of the 79 students majoring in physical sciences at UC Berkeley, 73% are male and 27% are female.
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Ohio University - Athens Campus ranked #18 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the town of Athens, OHIO Athens is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Women make up 52% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
Full Physical Sciences at Ohio University - Athens Campus Report
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Yale University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
Of the 74 students majoring in physical sciences at Yale, 70% are male and 30% are female.
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Carnegie Mellon University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Carnegie Mellon is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Pittsburgh.
Of the 71 students majoring in physical sciences at Carnegie Mellon, 66% are male and 34% are female.
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Cornell University ranked #21 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
Of the 70 students majoring in physical sciences at Cornell, 67% are male and 33% are female.
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University of Pennsylvania ranked #21 on this year’s Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
Women make up 36% of the physical sciences majors at the school.
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University of Minnesota - Twin Cities came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physical Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. UMN Twin Cities is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Minneapolis.
Of the 66 students majoring in physical sciences at UMN Twin Cities, 55% are male and 45% are female.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
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Georgia State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #23 on the list. Located in the large city of Atlanta, Georgia State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
About 52% of the students majoring in physical sciences at the school are women while 48% are male.
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The Graduate Center, CUNY did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physical sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the city of New York, The Graduate Center is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
Of the 64 students majoring in physical sciences at The Graduate Center, 56% are male and 44% are female.
Full Physical Sciences at The Graduate Center, CUNY Report
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Remaining Award Winners
This list represents the remainder of the colleges awarded a Most Popular Physical Sciences Master's Degree Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 364 different United States physical sciences schools we analyzed.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | University of California - Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz, CA |
| 50 | Oregon State University | Corvallis, OR |
| 53 | Missouri State University - Springfield | Springfield, MO |
| 54 | Indiana University - Bloomington | Bloomington, IN |
| 54 | University of California - Riverside | Riverside, CA |
| 54 | The University of Tennessee - Knoxville | Knoxville, TN |
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 Master's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 57 | University of Hawaii at Manoa | Honolulu, HI |
| 57 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, NC |
| 59 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Champaign, IL |
| 59 | University of Maryland - College Park | College Park, MD |
| 59 | Kent State University at Kent | Kent, OH |
| 62 | Michigan State University | East Lansing, MI |
| 62 | Duke University | Durham, NC |
| 62 | Washington University in St Louis | Saint Louis, MO |
| 65 | University of Utah | Salt Lake City, UT |
| 65 | East Carolina University | Greenville, NC |
| 65 | San Francisco State University | San Francisco, CA |
| 68 | The University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, AL |
| 68 | Wright State University - Main Campus | Dayton, OH |
| 68 | University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville, VA |
| 68 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | Charlotte, NC |
| 68 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
| 68 | Villanova University | Villanova, PA |
Physical Sciences by Region
View the Most Popular Physical Sciences Master'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 |
Majors Related to Physical Sciences
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 |
Most Popular Related Majors
| 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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