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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for General Physics in California (With Aid)

28 Ranked Colleges
1,083 Degrees Awarded
$11,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor's in California For Those Getting Aid

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 13,287 people earned their degree in general physics, making the major the 57th most popular in the United States.

Across California, there were 2,989 general physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,083 general physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 28 colleges that offer a degree in general physics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent general 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 general physics program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for General Physics in California (With Aid)

#21 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Los Angeles. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Cal State LA is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 16 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal State LA also took the #21 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State LA is $2,768 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Los Angeles General Physics Report

#15 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fullerton. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Fullerton is a large school located in Fullerton, California that handed out 19 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal State Fullerton also made our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #15. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Fullerton is $7,991 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, 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 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on General Physics at California State University - Fullerton

#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Riverside. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid. This large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 38 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

UCR also took the #6 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Riverside is $12,871 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low student loan default rate of 2.1% 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 General Physics at University of California - Riverside

#13 in overall quality

Out of the 28 schools in the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #4 spot on the list. California State University - Long Beach is a large school located in Long Beach, California that handed out 53 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

CSULB not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $9,622 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid per year to attend CSULB.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on General Physics at California State University - Long Beach

#5

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California
#4 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Santa Barbara. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid. Santa Barbara, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 161 students in 2019-2020.

UCSB also made our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Santa Barbara is $15,884 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low student loan default rate of 1.5% 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 full report on General Physics at University of California - Santa Barbara

#6

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#5 in overall quality

University of California - Los Angeles came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. UCLA is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 64 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA also took the #5 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UCLA is $14,279 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

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 96%.

Read more about General Physics at UCLA

#7

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#2 in overall quality

Stanford University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Stanford, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 18 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.

Stanford also took the #2 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Stanford is $11,496 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on General Physics at Stanford University

#9 in overall quality

University of California - Irvine landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Irvine, California, this large public school handed out 39 degrees to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid list, UC Irvine has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UC Irvine is $14,783 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about General Physics at UC Irvine

With a ranking of #9, California State University - Dominguez Hills did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. CSUDH is a public institution located in Carson, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $4,215 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid per year to attend California State University - Dominguez Hills.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on General Physics at CSUDH

#10

University of California - Berkeley

Berkeley, California
#3 in overall quality

University of California - Berkeley ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. University of California - Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 135 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend UC Berkeley is $15,329 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

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

Read more about General Physics at UC Berkeley

#7 in overall quality

University of California - San Diego came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in La Jolla, California, and it awarded 50 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

UCSD also made our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $14,232 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid per year to attend UCSD.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.

Full UCSD General Physics Report

#22 in overall quality

California State University - Bakersfield came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Bakersfield, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 5 students in 2019-2020.

CSUB also took the #22 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $5,318 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid per year to attend California State University - Bakersfield.

Full CSUB General Physics Report

#17 in overall quality

California State University - Sacramento ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Sacramento is located in Sacramento, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 16 bachelors’s general physics degrees to qualified students.

Sac State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #17 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $9,979 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid per year to attend Sac State.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about General Physics at Sac State

#14

California State University - San Bernardino

San Bernardino, California
#23 in overall quality

California State University - San Bernardino ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - San Bernardino is a fairly large school located in San Bernardino, California that handed out 15 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

CSUSB also took the #23 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CSUSB is $7,342 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.

Full CSUSB General Physics Report

#15

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#16 in overall quality

San Diego State University landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. San Diego State University is a large public school situated in San Diego, California. It awarded 8 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend SDSU is $14,788 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Full San Diego State University General Physics Report

#8 in overall quality

With a ranking of #16, University of California - Davis did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Davis, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 32 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Davis, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $14,669 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid per year to attend University of California - Davis.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about General Physics at UC Davis

#14 in overall quality

California State Polytechnic University - Pomona came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Cal Poly Pomona is a large school located in Pomona, California that handed out 39 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid list, Cal Poly Pomona has also earned the #14 rank in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is $12,734 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. 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 Cal Poly Pomona General Physics Report

California State University - Stanislaus landed the #18 spot on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Turlock, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 11 students in 2019-2020.

It costs about $6,019 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid per year to attend Stan State.

The low student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on General Physics at Stan State

California State University - Fresno landed the #19 spot on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in Fresno, California, and it awarded 6 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $5,464 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid per year to attend California State University - Fresno.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on General Physics at California State University - Fresno

#19 in overall quality

University of California - Merced came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Merced, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s general physics degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.

UC Merced did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #19 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Merced is $13,896 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on General Physics at University of California - Merced

#21

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#11 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well in the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #21. This fairly large school is located in Santa Cruz, California, and it awarded 43 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend UC Santa Cruz is $18,186 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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 General Physics at University of California - Santa Cruz

#22

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California
#18 in overall quality

With a ranking of #22, San Francisco State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in San Francisco, California, this large public school handed out 16 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.

SFSU also took the #18 spot in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend San Francisco State University is $15,113 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

Read full report on General Physics at San Francisco State University

#23

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#1 in overall quality

California Institute of Technology ranked #23 on this year’s Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Caltech is a private not-for-profit institution located in Pasadena, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 34 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Caltech also made our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend Caltech is $24,274 for california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid.

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%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about General Physics at Caltech

#20 in overall quality

California State University - Chico came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Chico State is a fairly large school located in Chico, California that handed out 13 bachelors’s general physics degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree general physics students with aid list, Chico State has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $15,017 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid per year to attend California State University - Chico.

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 General Physics at Chico State

#24 in overall quality

California State University - East Bay came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Value General Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Hayward, California, this fairly large public school handed out 6 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s general physics students in 2019-2020.

Cal State East Bay not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #24 on our “Best General Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend California State University - East Bay is $11,116 for California Bachelor’s Degree General Physics students with aid.

Full California State University - East Bay General Physics Report

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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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