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2024 Best Physics Schools in New York

19 Colleges in New York
1,121 Physics Degrees Awarded
$38,707 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in physics, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #68 in the country in terms of popularity. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 19 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Physics Schools in New York ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,121 degrees in physics during the 2021-2022 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Physics School

Best Physics Schools in New York The physics program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Physics rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for physics schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Physics Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Physics
Master's Degrees in Physics
Doctor's Degrees in Physics

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 Physics Schools in New York list to help you make the college decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Physics in New York

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the physics degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top New York Schools in Physics

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
109 Physics Degrees Awarded
11.9% Growth in Graduates

Cornell University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in physics. Located in the small city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #22 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Cornell is a great university overall.

There were approximately 109 physics students who graduated with this degree at Cornell in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the physics program report average early career wages of $38,630.

More information about a degree in physics from Cornell University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
110 Physics Degrees Awarded
$89,777 Median Starting Salary

Every student pursuing a degree in physics needs to look into University of Rochester. University of Rochester is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Rochester. A Best Colleges rank of #104 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means University of Rochester is a great university overall.

There were approximately 110 physics students who graduated with this degree at University of Rochester in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the physics major at University of Rochester earn $51,070 more than the typical graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in physics from University of Rochester

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
141 Physics Degrees Awarded
7.8% Growth in Graduates

New York University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in physics. NYU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #27 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means NYU is a great university overall.

There were about 141 physics students who graduated with this degree at NYU in the most recent data year. After graduating, physics degree recipients typically make about $33,529 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in physics from New York University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In NY
59 Physics Degrees Awarded

Rochester Institute of Technology is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in physics. Located in the suburb of Rochester, RIT is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #285 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means RIT is a great school overall.

There were approximately 59 physics students who graduated with this degree at RIT in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in physics from Rochester Institute of Technology

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
60 Physics Degrees Awarded
$42,448 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Troy, RPI is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #106 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means RPI is a great school overall.

There were about 60 physics students who graduated with this degree at RPI in the most recent data year. Those physics students who get their degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute receive $3,741 more than the average physics grad.

More information about a degree in physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In NY
32 Physics Degrees Awarded

Located in the medium-sized city of Syracuse, Syracuse is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #132 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Syracuse is a great university overall.

There were about 32 physics students who graduated with this degree at Syracuse in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in physics from Syracuse University

7
SUNY Stony Brook crest
Stony Brook University
Stony Brook, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
116 Physics Degrees Awarded
6.9% Growth in Graduates

SUNY Stony Brook is a very large public university located in the large suburb of Stony Brook. A Best Colleges rank of #253 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SUNY Stony Brook is a great university overall.

There were roughly 116 physics students who graduated with this degree at SUNY Stony Brook in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, physics degree recipients typically make around $25,311 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in physics from Stony Brook University

8
Skidmore crest
Skidmore College
Saratoga Springs, NY
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
22nd Most Popular In NY

Located in the small suburb of Saratoga Springs, Skidmore is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #281 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Skidmore is a great college overall.

There were approximately 9 physics students who graduated with this degree at Skidmore in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physics from Skidmore College

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$34,444 Median Starting Salary

University at Buffalo is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Buffalo. A Best Colleges rank of #313 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means University at Buffalo is a great university overall.

There were roughly 27 physics students who graduated with this degree at University at Buffalo in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the physics program state that they receive average early career income of $34,444.

More information about a degree in physics from University at Buffalo

10
Union College crest
Union College New York
Schenectady, NY
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
22nd Most Popular In NY

Located in the small city of Schenectady, Union College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 43rd out of 142 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.

There were approximately 10 physics students who graduated with this degree at Union College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in physics from Union College New York

Best Physics Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Physics Schools in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Pennsylvania334635
Maryland279286
New Jersey273272
District of Columbia18879
Delaware17537

View All Rankings >

One of 8 majors within the Physical Sciences area of study, Physics has other similar majors worth exploring.

Physics Concentrations

MajorAnnual Graduates
General Physics944
Acoustics82
Optics/Optical Sciences63
Other Physics23
Elementary Particle Physics5
Theoretical & Mathematical Physics4

View All Physics Focus Areas >

Related MajorAnnual Graduates
Chemistry1,347
General Physical Sciences755
Geological & Earth Sciences503
Other Physical Science216
Astronomy & Astrophysics93
Materials Sciences85
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology74

View All Physics Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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