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2022 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physical Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in California

12 Ranked Colleges
816 Degrees Awarded
$33,700 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k

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 “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Physical Sciences is the 18th most popular major in the country with 52,879 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, physical sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $38,122 and had an average of $22,339 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 8,509 physical sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,072 and $18,572 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 816 physical sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $71,544 and $133,402 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 12 colleges that offer a degree in physical sciences. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great physical sciences 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 physical sciences program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Physical Sciences Schools

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 Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for california doctor’s degree physical sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 12 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physical Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in California

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Stanford, California, and it awarded 111 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree physical sciences students whose families make $0-$30k list, Stanford has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Stanford University are $55,011, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full Stanford Physical Sciences Report

#2

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#2 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California Institute of Technology. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California 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 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 43 students in 2019-2020.

Caltech also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #2. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Caltech are $56,649.

Read more about Physical Sciences at California Institute of Technology

#4 in overall quality

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the #3 spot on the list. UC Berkeley is a large school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 139 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Berkeley are $29,347, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Physical Sciences at UC Berkeley

#4

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #4 spot on the list. UCLA is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 69 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UCLA are $28,131.

Read more about Physical Sciences at UCLA

#8 in overall quality

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Irvine landed the #5 spot on the list. Irvine, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 75 students in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #8. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Irvine are $28,456.

Read more about Physical Sciences at UC Irvine

#6

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#9 in overall quality

San Diego State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 9 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SDSU, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at San Diego State University are $18,658, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at SDSU

#7

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California
#6 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Barbara ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. UCSB is located in Santa Barbara, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 61 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

UCSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UCSB are $28,670, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full University of California - Santa Barbara Physical Sciences Report

#5 in overall quality

University of California - Davis did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #8. This large school is located in Davis, California, and it awarded 50 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Davis also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #5. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Davis are $28,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Physical Sciences at University of California - Davis

#10 in overall quality

University of California - Riverside did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #9. This large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 49 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCR also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #10. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UCR are $28,686.

Full University of California - Riverside Physical Sciences Report

#7 in overall quality

University of California - San Diego did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #10. UCSD is located in La Jolla, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 100 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

UCSD not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UCSD are $28,631, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - San Diego

#12 in overall quality

University of California - Merced came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of California - Merced is a medium-sized school located in Merced, California that handed out 11 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Merced not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Merced are $43,854, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - Merced

#12

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#9 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Santa Cruz, California, this fairly large public school handed out 40 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s physical sciences students in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Santa Cruz are $28,952, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Physical Sciences 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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to NASA.

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