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Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in California

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

16 Colleges
$17,321 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$43,416 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Physical Sciences School for You

With 1,641 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, physical sciences is the #12 most popular major in California.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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 Value Physical Sciences 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 value experiences for physical sciences students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for physical sciences majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Physical Sciences Schools

$6,846 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found California State University - Long Beach to be the best value school for physical sciences students who want to pursue a degree in California. Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSULB are $6,846 per year.

Full Physical Sciences at California State University - Long Beach Report

$14,417 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 16 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Santa Barbara landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UCSB are $14,417 a year.

UCSB also claimed a spot on our Best Physical Sciences Schools in California list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

Full Physical Sciences at University of California - Santa Barbara Report

#3

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA
$8,136 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 16 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Diego State University landed the # 3 spot on the list. SDSU is a very large public school located in the city of San Diego.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SDSU are $8,136 per year.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at San Diego State University

$6,976 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at California State University - Fullerton helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best physical sciences schools in California. Located in the suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Cal State Fullerton are $6,976 a year.

Read More…

$14,226 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of California - Berkeley helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best physical sciences schools in California. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UC Berkeley are $14,226 a year.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Physical Sciences Schools in California list.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - Berkeley

$6,785 Average Tuition & Fees

California State University - Los Angeles ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in California list. Cal State LA is a very large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal State LA are $6,785 per year.

Full Physical Sciences at California State University - Los Angeles Report

$7,043 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, California State University - Northridge did quite well on this year’s best value schools for physical sciences students. CSUN is a fairly large public school located in the city of Northridge.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CSUN are $7,043 a year.

Full Physical Sciences at California State University - Northridge Report

$13,258 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #8, University of California - Los Angeles did quite well on this year’s best value schools for physical sciences students. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.

UCLA undergraduate students pay an average of $13,258 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UCLA also is in the top 10% of our Best Physical Sciences Schools in California ranking.

Read More…

$13,657 Average Tuition & Fees

University of California - Merced did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for physical sciences students. It came in at #9 on the list. UC Merced is a medium-sized public school located in the rural area of Merced.

UC Merced undergraduate students pay an average of $13,657 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

$14,700 Average Tuition & Fees

University of California - San Diego ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in California list. UCSD is a fairly large public school located in the large city of La Jolla.

UCSD undergraduate students pay an average of $14,700 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

Best Value Physical Sciences Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Physical Sciences Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 246
Oregon 215
Nevada 60
Hawaii 47
Alaska 31

Physical Sciences Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Chemistry 5,005
Physics 3,727
Geological & Earth Sciences 2,491
Materials Sciences 448
Astronomy & Astrophysics 371
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology 342
Other Physical Science 191
General Physical Sciences 107
Physics and Astronomy 23

Related Major Annual Graduates
Engineering 61,791
Computer & Information Sciences 60,971
Biological & Biomedical Sciences 28,851
Mathematics & Statistics 15,127
Engineering Technologies 7,672

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 16 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 NASA.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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