2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. 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 Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Physics is the 67th most popular major in the country with 14,123 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, physics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $42,475 and had an average of $22,421 in loans still to pay off.
At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 2,093 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,398 and $43,194 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 171 colleges that offer a degree in physics. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great physics programs and cost less that 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 physics program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k.
Top 25 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Physics (Income $0-$30k)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Evanston, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Northwestern, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Northwestern University are $56,567, but some majors have different tuition rates.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California Institute of Technology. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s physics degrees to 6 students in 2019-2020.
Caltech also made our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #14. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at California Institute of Technology are $56,649.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s physics degrees to 17 students in 2019-2020.
UChicago did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Chicago are $61,548, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Stanford University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k. Stanford University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 23 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Stanford did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Stanford are $55,011, but some majors have different tuition rates.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k. University of Pennsylvania is a large school located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that handed out 14 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
UPenn also took the #12 spot in our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Pennsylvania are $41,760, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Princeton University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Princeton is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Princeton, New Jersey. It awarded 29 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Princeton did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Princeton University are $56,470, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Harvard University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Harvard is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school has a large population, and it awarded 24 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Harvard also made our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #8. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Harvard University are $50,654.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and it awarded 4 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
MIT not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Massachusetts Institute of Technology are $56,719.
Johns Hopkins University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #9. Johns Hopkins is a large school located in Baltimore, Maryland that handed out 24 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Johns Hopkins not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Johns Hopkins University are $59,425, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. U-M is a public institution located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 18 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
U-M also made our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #13. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor are $49,548.
Brown University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #11. Brown University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Providence, Rhode Island. It awarded 32 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our master’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k list, Brown has also earned the #15 rank in our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Brown are $60,363, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #12, Cornell University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Cornell University is located in Ithaca, New York and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 30 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cornell, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Cornell are $30,042, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Florida did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #13. UF is a large public school situated in Gainesville, Florida. It awarded 5 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UF are $30,130, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Wisconsin - Madison ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Wisconsin - Madison is located in Madison, Wisconsin and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 13 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our master’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k list, UW - Madison has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UW - Madison are $25,523, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #15, Columbia University in the City of New York did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Columbia University in the City of New York is a private not-for-profit institution located in New York, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 17 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Columbia not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Columbia University in the City of New York are $51,194.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #16. UNC Chapel Hill is located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 5 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UNC Chapel Hill are $30,248.
Read full report on Physics at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Vanderbilt University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Vanderbilt is a fairly large school located in Nashville, Tennessee that handed out 3 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Vanderbilt are $50,624.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #18. UT Rio Grande Valley is a large public school situated in Edinburg, Texas. It awarded 12 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UT Rio Grande Valley are $15,151, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Maryland - College Park did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #19. UMCP is a large school located in College Park, Maryland that handed out 13 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UMCP are $30,885, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UIUC is located in Champaign, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 14 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are $30,083.
The City College of New York ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. New York, New York is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s physics degrees to 7 students in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at CCNY are $20,832.
With a ranking of #22, University of California - Riverside did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. Riverside, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s physics degrees to 30 students in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Riverside are $28,686.
Read more about Physics at University of California - Riverside
University of California - Berkeley landed the #23 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of California - Berkeley is a large public school situated in Berkeley, California. It awarded 29 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
UC Berkeley did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #18 on our “Best Physics Master’s Degree Schools” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UC Berkeley are $29,347.
Read full report on Physics at University of California - Berkeley
William & Mary did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #24. William & Mary is a public institution located in Williamsburg, Virginia. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 8 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at William & Mary are $34,800, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Washington - Seattle Campus ranked #25 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Seattle, Washington, and it awarded 20 masters’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UW Seattle are $30,294, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read more about Physics at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
Rest of the Best 26 in Best Value Physics Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $0-$30k
Not only did these schools make the top 26 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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