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2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California

13 Ranked Colleges
260 Degrees Awarded
$75,527 Avg Salary
Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2021-2022, 13,447 people earned their degree in physics, making the major the 68th most popular in the United States. In , physics graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $42,912 and had an average of $22,477 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 2,939 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $41,268 and $17,323 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 260 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $76,943 and $148,774 respectively.

This year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California” ranking looked at 13 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in physics. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in physics.

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 “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California” 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.

Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California

The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California”.

Top 13 Most Focused Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physics in California

1

Out of the 13 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California Institute of Technology landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Pasadena, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 20 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s physics students in 2021-2022.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 99%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Physics at California Institute of Technology

2
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Stanford University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s physics degrees to 55 students in 2021-2022.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 98%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.2% 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%. The impressive undergraduate 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.

Read full report on Physics at Stanford

3

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 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California. UC Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 34 doctorate’s physics degrees to qualified students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read more about Physics at UC Berkeley

4

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Riverside. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California. University of California - Riverside is located in Riverside, California and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 14 doctorate’s physics degrees to qualified students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, 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 88%.

Full University of California - Riverside Physics Report

5

Out of the 13 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - San Diego landed the #5 spot on the list. University of California - San Diego is a public institution located in La Jolla, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 16 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Physics at University of California - San Diego

6

University of California - Los Angeles ranked #6 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. UCLA is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 23 doctorate’s physics degrees to qualified students.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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%.

Read more about Physics at University of California - Los Angeles

7

University of California - Merced did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking, coming in at #7. University of California - Merced is a medium-sized public school situated in Merced, California. It awarded 10 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2021-2022.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Physics at UC Merced

8

University of California - Davis ranked #8 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. University of California - Davis is a large school located in Davis, California that handed out 28 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2021-2022.

The undergrad 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 school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Davis

9

University of California - Santa Barbara landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. UCSB is located in Santa Barbara, California and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 17 doctorate’s physics degrees to qualified students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Santa Barbara

10

University of California - Irvine came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. This large school is located in Irvine, California, and it awarded 24 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2021-2022.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full UC Irvine Physics Report

11

University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. This fairly large school is located in Santa Cruz, California, and it awarded 7 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2021-2022.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Santa Cruz

12
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking, coming in at #12. USC is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 12 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2021-2022.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.5% 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%. 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 undergraduate 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.

Read more about Physics at USC

13
Naval Postgraduate School crest
Naval Postgraduate School
Monterey, California

Naval Postgraduate School came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. Naval Postgraduate School is a small school located in Monterey, California that handed out 0 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2021-2022.

Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Physics at Naval Postgraduate School

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