2023 Best Physics Schools
Finding the Best Physics School for You
In 2020-2021, 3,727 people earned a degree or certificate in physics, making the major the #62 most popular in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Physics Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 143 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Physics Schools in the United States
Check out the physics programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 15% Best Physics Schools
Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for physics students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Physics Schools list. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston.
The excellent programs at Illinois Institute of Technology helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best physics schools in the United States. Illinois Tech is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Physics Schools list. Located in the large city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Arizona is a great place for physics students. Located in the city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public college with a very large student population.
Rochester Institute of Technology landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best physics programs. RIT is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Rochester.
Northeastern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for physics students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the city of Boston, Northeastern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
University of California - Santa Barbara ranked #8 on this year’s Best Physics Schools list. UCSB is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara.
With a ranking of #9, Wake Forest University did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students. Wake Forest University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Winston-Salem.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #10 on this year’s Best Physics Schools list. UIUC is a very large public school located in the city of Champaign.
Read full report on Physics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
With a ranking of #11, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Christopher Newport University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Physics Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Newport News, CNU is a public college with a small student population.
Cornell University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best physics programs. Cornell is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Ithaca.
University of Wyoming came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Physics Schools ranking. Located in the town of Laramie, UW is a public college with a large student population.
Iowa State University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Physics Schools ranking. Iowa State is a very large public school located in the city of Ames.
With a ranking of #16, Johns Hopkins University did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for physics students. It came in at #17 on the list. UW - Madison is a very large public school located in the large city of Madison.
Drexel University landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best physics programs. Located in the city of Philadelphia, Drexel is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
University of Maryland - College Park came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Physics Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public college with a very large student population.
The University of Texas at Austin ranked #20 on this year’s Best Physics Schools list. UT Austin is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Austin.
University of Delaware ranked #21 on this year’s Best Physics Schools list. UD is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Newark.
Honorable Mentions
Here are some additional great schools for Physics students that almost earned our Best Physics Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor, MI |
| 23 | Temple University | Philadelphia, PA |
| 24 | Baylor University | Waco, TX |
| 25 | University of Houston | Houston, TX |
| 26 | Oklahoma State University - Main Campus | Stillwater, OK |
| 27 | Towson University | Towson, MD |
| 28 | University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame, IN |
Physics by Region
View the Best Physics Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Physics Rankings
Physics Related Rankings by Major
Physics is one of 8 different types of programs to choose from.
Majors Similar to Physics
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | 5,005 |
| Geological & Earth Sciences | 2,491 |
| Materials Sciences | 448 |
| Astronomy & Astrophysics | 371 |
| Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology | 342 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- 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 the rest 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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to A. T. Service.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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