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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics (Income $75-$110k) in California

5 Ranked Colleges
112 Degrees Awarded
$19,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor's in California For Those Making $75-$110k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Astronomy & Astrophysics is the 222nd most popular major in the country with 1,268 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, astronomy and astrophysics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $27,700 and had an average of $21,346 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 153 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $14,817 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 112 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking looked at 5 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in astronomy and astrophysics. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality astronomy and astrophysics programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the astronomy and astrophysics program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools

The astronomy school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k”.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k.

Top 5 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics (Income $75-$110k) in California

#1

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California Institute of Technology. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k list. California Institute of Technology is a small school located in Pasadena, California that handed out 8 bachelors’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

Caltech also took the #1 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $12,788 for california bachelor’s degree astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Caltech.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full California Institute of Technology Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

#2

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#2 in overall quality

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #2 spot on the list. UCLA is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 19 bachelors’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k list, UCLA has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UCLA is $19,590 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of California - Los Angeles Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k. University of California - Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 53 bachelors’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

UC Berkeley also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $21,401 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend University of California - Berkeley.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of California - Berkeley Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

#4

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#5 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend San Diego State University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k. San Diego State University is a public institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k list, SDSU has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SDSU is $18,766 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at San Diego State University

#5

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#4 in overall quality

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #5 spot on the list. UC Santa Cruz is a public institution located in Santa Cruz, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 28 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz also took the #4 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $22,739 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend University of California - Santa Cruz.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at University of California - Santa Cruz

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Notes and References

References

  • 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 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).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

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