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Most Popular Physics Doctor's Degree Schools

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2023 Most Popular Physics Doctor's Degree Schools

191 Colleges
$81,190 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Physics Doctor's Degree 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.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Most Popular Physics Doctor's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 191 schools in the United States to see which ones were the most popular doctor's degree programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Physics program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Physics Doctor's Degree Colleges.

#1

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Our 2023 rankings named Harvard University the most popular school in the United States for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge.

About 26% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 74% are male.

Full Physics at Harvard University Report

#2

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

About 17% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 83% are male.

Read full report on Physics at Stanford University

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

Women make up 18% of the physics majors at the school.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Berkeley

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a great place for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the midsize city of Cambridge, MIT is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Women make up 22% of the physics majors at the school.

Full Physics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology Report

#5

University of Arizona

Tucson, AZ

The in-demand doctor’s degree programs at University of Arizona helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular physics schools in the United States. Located in the city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public school with a very large student population.

Of the 36 students majoring in physics at University of Arizona, 89% are male and 11% are female.

Read More…

With a ranking of #6, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Champaign.

Of the 32 students majoring in physics at UIUC, 66% are male and 34% are female.

Read full report on Physics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

University of Colorado Boulder ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Boulder, CU - Boulder is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 6% of the physics majors at the school.

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University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physics programs. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public college with a very large student population.

Of the 29 students majoring in physics at UW Seattle, 79% are male and 21% are female.

Read full report on Physics at University of Washington - Seattle Campus

With a ranking of #9, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. U-M is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor.

Of the 28 students majoring in physics at U-M, 57% are male and 43% are female.

Read More…

Ohio State University - Main Campus ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Ohio State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Columbus.

About 11% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 89% are male.

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University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physics students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. UW - Madison is a very large public school located in the large city of Madison.

Women make up 4% of the physics majors at the school.

Full Physics at University of Wisconsin - Madison Report

University of Maryland - College Park came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public college with a very large student population.

Women make up 21% of the physics majors at the school.

Read full report on Physics at University of Maryland - College Park

With a ranking of #13, University of California - Los Angeles did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. UCLA is a very large public school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

Of the 23 students majoring in physics at UCLA, 78% are male and 22% are female.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - Los Angeles

#13

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

Michigan State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physics students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #13 on the list. Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public school with a very large student population.

Women make up 9% of the physics majors at the school.

Read More…

With a ranking of #15, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for physics students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public school with a fairly large student population.

About 14% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 86% are male.

Full Physics at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Report

#15

University of Rochester

Rochester, NY

University of Rochester ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the medium-sized city of Rochester, University of Rochester is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Of the 22 students majoring in physics at University of Rochester, 82% are male and 18% are female.

Read full report on Physics at University of Rochester

#17

Rice University

Houston, TX

Rice University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for physics students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #17 on the list. Rice is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Houston.

Women make up 43% of the physics majors at the school.

Full Physics at Rice University Report

California Institute of Technology landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physics programs. Located in the city of Pasadena, Caltech is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

About 10% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 90% are male.

Read full report on Physics at California Institute of Technology

University of California - San Diego ranked #17 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public school with a fairly large student population.

About 19% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 81% are male.

Read full report on Physics at University of California - San Diego

#20

Duke University

Durham, NC

Duke University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham.

About 20% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 80% are male.

Full Physics at Duke University Report

#20

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

Cornell University ranked #20 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Cornell is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Ithaca.

Women make up 20% of the physics majors at the school.

Read More…

#20

Yale University

New Haven, CT

Yale University ranked #20 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Yale is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New Haven.

About 35% of the students majoring in physics at the school are women while 65% are male.

Full Physics at Yale University Report

#23

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

University of Chicago came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Women make up 16% of the physics majors at the school.

Read full report on Physics at University of Chicago

#24

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL

Florida State University landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree physics programs. Located in the city of Tallahassee, Florida State is a public school with a very large student population.

Women make up 28% of the physics majors at the school.

Full Physics at Florida State University Report

University of California - Riverside ranked #24 on this year’s Most Popular Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools list. UCR is a fairly large public school located in the city of Riverside.

Of the 18 students majoring in physics at UCR, 78% are male and 22% are female.

Read More…

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Physics Doctor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
29 University of Houston Houston, TX
29 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA
29 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
29 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL
29 Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus Atlanta, GA
29 New York University New York, NY
29 University of California - Davis Davis, CA
36 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
36 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX
38 University of New Mexico - Main Campus Albuquerque, NM
38 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
38 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
38 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
38 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA
38 Texas A&M University - College Station College Station, TX

Physics by Region

View the Most Popular Physics Doctor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

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 28 schools only.

  • 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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