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Best Physics Schools in California

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2023 Best Physics Schools in California

16 Colleges
$41,268 Avg Salary
$18,506 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Physics School for You

With 483 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, physics is the #52 most popular major in California.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Physics Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 16 schools in California to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Physics Schools in California

Check out the physics programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 10 Best Physics Schools

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Our analysis found Stanford University to be the best school for physics students who want to pursue a degree in California. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Santa Barbara. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Physics Schools in California list. UCSB is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Santa Barbara.

Full Physics at University of California - Santa Barbara Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Berkeley. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Physics Schools in California list. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the city of Berkeley.

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Out of the 16 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the # 4 spot on the list. UCLA is a very large public school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

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#5

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Diego State University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Physics Schools in California list. Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Physics at San Diego State University

With a ranking of #6, University of California - San Diego did quite well on this year’s best schools for physics students. Located in the city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public college with a very large student population.

Full Physics at University of California - San Diego Report

University of California - Merced ranked #7 on this year’s Best Physics Schools in California list. Located in the rural area of Merced, UC Merced is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

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California State University - Long Beach landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best physics programs. CSULB is a fairly large public school located in the city of Long Beach.

Read full report on Physics at California State University - Long Beach

University of California - Riverside came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Physics Schools in California ranking. UCR is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Riverside.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Riverside

University of California - Irvine did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for physics students. It came in at #10 on the list. UC Irvine is a fairly large public school located in the city of Irvine.

Full Physics at University of California - Irvine Report

Best Physics Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Physics Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 74
Oregon 63
Nevada 13
Hawaii 3
Alaska 1

More Physics Rankings in California

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 16 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.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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