2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
General Physics is the 57th most popular major in the country with 13,287 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 8,178 general physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 321 colleges that offer a degree in general physics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent general physics programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the general physics program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for General Physics (Income $0-$30k)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California Institute of Technology. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 34 students in 2019-2020.
Caltech did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $5,456 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California Institute of Technology.
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.
Out of the 321 schools in the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the #2 spot on the list. Northwestern University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 11 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Northwestern also made our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #4. The estimated yearly cost for Northwestern is $1,866 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Pennsylvania. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 60 degrees to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.
UPenn not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #8 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $3,181 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UPenn.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 63 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
UChicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Chicago is $2,712 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k. Cambridge, Massachusetts is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 83 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at MIT, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Massachusetts Institute of Technology is $4,535 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 98%.
Full Massachusetts Institute of Technology General Physics Report
Stanford University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Stanford is located in Stanford, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 18 bachelors’s general physics degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Stanford, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Stanford University is $-1,387 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k. When an average net price is negative, it usually means that the student will receive more financial aid than it costs to attend the school.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Princeton University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #7. Princeton University is a medium-sized school located in Princeton, New Jersey that handed out 39 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Princeton did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Princeton University is $1,386 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Harvard University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 45 degrees to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.
Harvard did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #12 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Harvard University is $2,973 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low student loan default rate of 1.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
With a ranking of #9, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Ann Arbor, Michigan is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 51 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k list, U-M has also earned the #14 rank in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $3,166 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about General Physics at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Dartmouth College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. This medium-sized school is located in Hanover, New Hampshire, and it awarded 12 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Dartmouth not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Dartmouth College is $12,052 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Johns Hopkins University landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Johns Hopkins is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Baltimore, Maryland. It awarded 18 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Johns Hopkins did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #22 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Johns Hopkins University is $3,526 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The low student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
University of Florida ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Gainesville, Florida is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 41 students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend University of Florida is $1,994 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The low student loan default rate of 2.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, this large public school handed out 61 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.
UW - Madison also took the #20 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $4,367 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Brown University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Brown University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Providence, Rhode Island. It awarded 27 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Brown also did well on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Brown is $201 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
With a ranking of #15, Cornell University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Cornell is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Ithaca, New York. It awarded 52 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Cornell did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #15 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $7,484 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Cornell University.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #16, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a large school located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina that handed out 49 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
UNC Chapel Hill also claimed a top spot on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $4,026 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UNC Chapel Hill.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill General Physics Report
Williams College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #17. Located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 11 degrees to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Williams College is $2,498 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. New York, New York is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 29 students in 2019-2020.
Columbia also took the #5 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $8,916 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Columbia University in the City of New York.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on General Physics at Columbia University in the City of New York
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well in the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #19. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 68 students in 2019-2020.
UIUC also claimed a top spot on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $5,477 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about General Physics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UW Seattle is a large public school situated in Seattle, Washington. It awarded 207 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
UW Seattle excels when it comes to general physics quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category. It costs about $7,850 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read more about General Physics at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
Vanderbilt University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #21. Vanderbilt University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Nashville, Tennessee. It awarded 9 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Vanderbilt University is $3,156 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
With a ranking of #22, University of Maryland - College Park did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in College Park, Maryland, this large public school awarded 75 degrees to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on this list, UMCP is in the top on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $8,054 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UMCP.
With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 2.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about General Physics at University of Maryland - College Park
University of California - Berkeley landed the #23 spot on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of California - Berkeley is a large school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 135 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
UC Berkeley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $8,392 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UC Berkeley.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about General Physics at University of California - Berkeley
With a ranking of #24, The City College of New York did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 24 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $704 for Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CCNY.
William & Mary ranked #25 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. William & Mary is a medium-sized school located in Williamsburg, Virginia that handed out 29 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, William & Mary also did well on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $4,711 for bachelor’s degree general physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend William & Mary.
The low student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Rest of the Best 49 in Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $0-$30k
Not only did these schools make the top 49 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
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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.
Credits
- Credit for the banner image above goes to A. T. Service.
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