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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astrophysics (Income $30-$48k) in the Far Western US Region

5 Ranked Colleges
112 Degrees Awarded
$9,300 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor's in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 383 people earned their degree in astrophysics, making the major the 671st most popular in the United States.

Across the Far Western US region, there were 124 astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 112 astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,083 and $22,209 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in astrophysics. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great astrophysics programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the astrophysics program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Astrophysics Schools

The astrophysical sciences school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k”.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 5 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astrophysics (Income $30-$48k) in the Far Western US Region

#1

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California Institute of Technology. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees to 6 students in 2019-2020.

Caltech did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for California Institute of Technology is $3,756 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

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. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.

Read full report on Astrophysics at Caltech

#2

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Los Angeles. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k. University of California - Los Angeles is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 19 bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA also took the #2 spot in our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $9,254 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of California - Los Angeles.

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%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

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

#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Berkeley. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. UC Berkeley is a large school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 50 bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $9,130 for far western us region bachelor’s degree astrophysical sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend UC Berkeley.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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%.

Full University of California - Berkeley Astrophysics Report

#4

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#4 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Santa Cruz. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k. University of California - Santa Cruz is a fairly large school located in Santa Cruz, California that handed out 28 bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for UC Santa Cruz is $11,793 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full UC Santa Cruz Astrophysics Report

#5 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Hawaii at Manoa. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $30-$48k. This fairly large school is located in Honolulu, Hawaii, and it awarded 6 bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UH Manoa, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Hawaii at Manoa is $12,540 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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%.

Read more about Astrophysics at University of Hawaii at Manoa

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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.

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