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2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k

5 Ranked Colleges
112 Degrees Awarded
$14,817 Avg Student Debt
Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor's in California For Those Making $48-$75k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

In 2019-2020, 1,268 people earned their degree in astronomy and astrophysics, making the major the 222nd most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, astronomy and astrophysics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $27,700 and had an average of $21,346 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 153 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $14,817 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 112 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in astronomy and astrophysics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent astronomy and astrophysics 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 astronomy and astrophysics program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The astronomy 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 Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k”.

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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 5 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics (Income $48-$75k) in California

#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 Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Located in Pasadena, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 8 degrees to qualified bachelors’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Caltech, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $8,042 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend California Institute of Technology.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Caltech

#2

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#2 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 19 bachelors’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCLA, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Los Angeles is $13,081 for california bachelor’s degree astronomy students whose families make $48-$75k.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

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

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Berkeley. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. UC Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 53 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree astronomy students whose families make $48-$75k list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Berkeley is $13,081 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $48-$75k.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at UC Berkeley

#4

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#4 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Santa Cruz. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Located in Santa Cruz, California, this fairly large public school awarded 28 degrees to qualified bachelors’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. It costs about $15,253 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UC Santa Cruz.

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 low student loan default rate of 2.9% 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 Astronomy & Astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz

#5

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Diego State University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. SDSU is a public institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU also took the #5 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for SDSU is $14,730 for California Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students whose families make $48-$75k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at San Diego State 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.

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