by our College Data Analytics TeamFor its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 73 schools in the Southeast Region to determine which ones were the best for physical sciences students pursuing a bachelor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 6,370 bachelor's degrees in physical sciences to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Your choice of physical sciences for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:
The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we include a school's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for physical sciences students working on their bachelor's degree.
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 Physical Sciences Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region 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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.
The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in physical sciences. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Duke University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in physical sciences. Duke is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Durham.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Duke University
Any student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in physical sciences has to look into University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Located in the small city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
It is hard to beat University of Virginia - Main Campus if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in physical sciences. University of Virginia is a very large public university located in the medium-sized suburb of Charlottesville.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from University of Virginia - Main Campus
Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in physical sciences has to look into Virginia Commonwealth University. VCU is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Richmond.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Virginia Commonwealth University
Georgia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Atlanta.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus
UF is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from University of Florida
William & Mary is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Williamsburg.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from William & Mary
Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Vanderbilt University
Located in the medium-sized suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Clemson University
Florida State is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Tallahassee.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Florida State University
Located in the city of Winston-Salem, Wake Forest University is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Wake Forest University
Located in the city of Columbia, UofSC is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from University of South Carolina - Columbia
Emory is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Atlanta.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Emory University
Located in the small city of Auburn, Auburn is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in physical sciences from Auburn University
Here are some additional great schools for Physical Sciences students in the Southeast Region that almost earned our Best Physical Sciences Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR |
| 16 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | Baton Rouge, LA |
| 17 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 18 | University of Georgia | Athens, GA |
| 19 | East Carolina University | Greenville, NC |
| 20 | Virginia Tech | Blacksburg, VA |
| 21 | University of Kentucky | Lexington, KY |
| 22 | University of Central Florida | Orlando, FL |
| 23 | Mississippi State University | Mississippi State, MS |
| 24 | University of South Florida - Main Campus | Tampa, FL |
Explore the best physical sciences schools for a specific state in the Southeast Region .
| State | Colleges | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | 34 | 1,153 |
| Mississippi | 34 | 303 |
| Florida | 34 | 1,037 |
| Virginia | 34 | 1,080 |
| Alabama | 33 | 431 |
| Georgia | 33 | 816 |
| West Virginia | 32 | 189 |
| Tennessee | 32 | 560 |
| South Carolina | 32 | 335 |
| Kentucky | 31 | 363 |
| Louisiana | 31 | 331 |
| Arkansas | 30 | 299 |
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | 3,608 |
| Physics | 1,354 |
| Geological & Earth Sciences | 1,020 |
| Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology | 178 |
| Astronomy & Astrophysics | 107 |
| Other Physical Science | 66 |
| General Physical Sciences | 27 |
| Physics and Astronomy | 10 |
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Biological & Biomedical Sciences | 32,538 |
| Engineering | 26,892 |
| Mathematics & Statistics | 4,940 |
| Agriculture & Agriculture Operations | 4,939 |
| Engineering Technologies | 4,650 |
| Natural Resources & Conservation | 4,474 |
| Architecture & Related Services | 1,980 |
| Military Technologies & Applied Sciences | 855 |
| Science Technologies / Technicians | 51 |
