2023 Best Value Colleges for Physical Sciences in North Carolina (With Aid)
9
Ranked Colleges
1,594
Degrees Awarded
$17,300
Avg Net Price*
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 50,306 people earned their degree in physical sciences, making the major the 19th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, physical sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $39,880 and had an average of $22,620 in loans still to pay off.
Across North Carolina, there were 1,594 physical sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $41,310 and $22,931 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 9 colleges that offered a degree in physical sciences. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent physical sciences programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the physical sciences program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
One Size Does Not Fit All
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid
The colleges and universities below are the best for north carolina physical sciences students with aid.
Top 9 Best Value Colleges for Physical Sciences in North Carolina (With Aid)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 314 ’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNC Chapel Hill, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UNC Chapel Hill is $12,469 for north carolina physical sciences students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.
Full UNC Chapel Hill Physical Sciences Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend North Carolina State University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid. NC State is located in Raleigh, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 194 ’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.
NC State also took the #3 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend North Carolina State University is $16,411 for North Carolina Physical Sciences students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad 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%.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at NC State
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Appalachian State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid list. Boone, North Carolina is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s physical sciences degrees to 107 students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Appalachian State, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Appalachian State University is $13,989 for North Carolina Physical Sciences students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at Appalachian State University
Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, East Carolina University landed the #4 spot on the list. East Carolina University is a public institution located in Greenville, North Carolina. The school has a large population, and it awarded 131 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
ECU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” list. The estimated yearly cost for ECU is $16,550 for North Carolina Physical Sciences students with aid.
Read full report on Physical Sciences at ECU
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Western Carolina University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid list. WCU is a fairly large public school situated in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It awarded 70 ’s physical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
WCU also took the #6 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” ranking. It costs about $13,924 for north carolina physical sciences students with aid per year to attend Western Carolina University.
Full WCU Physical Sciences Report
University of North Carolina at Charlotte ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid list. University of North Carolina at Charlotte is a large public school situated in Charlotte, North Carolina. It awarded 174 ’s physical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UNC Charlotte did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of North Carolina at Charlotte is $17,634 for North Carolina Physical Sciences students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UNC Charlotte Physical Sciences Report
University of North Carolina at Wilmington landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid ranking. This fairly large school is located in Wilmington, North Carolina, and it awarded 129 ’s physical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UNCW did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” list. It costs about $19,136 for north carolina physical sciences students with aid per year to attend UNCW.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physical Sciences at University of North Carolina at Wilmington
With a ranking of #8, Wake Forest University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid list. Wake Forest University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 49 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Wake Forest University also made our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend Wake Forest University is $32,845 for north carolina physical sciences students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Wake Forest University Physical Sciences Report
University of North Carolina at Asheville landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of North Carolina at Asheville is a public institution located in Asheville, North Carolina. The school has a small population, and it awarded 29 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our north carolina physical sciences students with aid list, UNCA has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Physical Sciences Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of North Carolina at Asheville is $12,551 for North Carolina Physical Sciences students with aid.
Full University of North Carolina at Asheville Physical Sciences Report
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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
- *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.
