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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $0-$30k) in California

6 Ranked Colleges
50 Degrees Awarded
$16,600 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor's in California For Those Making $0-$30k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.

Engineering & Applied Physics is the 440th most popular major in the country with 941 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across California, there were 124 engineering and applied physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 50 engineering and applied physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 6 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in engineering and applied physics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent engineering and applied physics programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the engineering and applied physics program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 6 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $0-$30k) in California

#1

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#1 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California Institute of Technology landed the #1 spot on the list. Caltech is located in Pasadena, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 3 bachelors’s applied physics degrees to qualified students.

Caltech also took the #1 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Caltech is $5,456 for California Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Caltech Engineering & Applied Physics Report

#2 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Berkeley. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Berkeley, California, this large public school awarded 11 degrees to qualified bachelors’s applied physics students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Berkeley, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Berkeley is $8,392 for california bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at University of California - Berkeley

#5 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - San Diego landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in La Jolla, California, this large public school awarded 2 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s applied physics students in 2019-2020.

UCSD also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $9,280 for California Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of California - San Diego.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at University of California - San Diego

#4

Santa Clara University

Santa Clara, California
#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Santa Clara University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. SCU is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Santa Clara, California. It awarded 6 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

SCU also took the #3 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Santa Clara University is $22,356 for california bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at Santa Clara University

#5

University of the Pacific

Stockton, California
#6 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of the Pacific landed the #5 spot on the list. Pacific is a medium-sized school located in Stockton, California that handed out 2 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Pacific also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #6. The estimated yearly cost for Pacific is $21,972 for California Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Pacific Engineering & Applied Physics Report

#6

Loyola Marymount University

Los Angeles, California
#4 in overall quality

With a ranking of #6, Loyola Marymount University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $0-$30k list. This medium-sized school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 1 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Loyola Marymount also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend Loyola Marymount University is $32,367 for california bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at Loyola Marymount University

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Notes and References

References

  • 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 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).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to NASA.

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