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2024 Best Physics Master's Degree Schools in California

14 Colleges in California
253 Master's Degrees
a master's degree in physics is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #70 out of 343 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 14 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Physics Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 253 master's degrees in physics during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Physics School for Your Master's Degree

Best Physics Master's Degree Schools in California The physics master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we include a school's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their master's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their master's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for physics students working on their master's degree.

More Ways to Rank Physics Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Physics Rankings Other Ranking Categories

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 Master's Degree Schools in California list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Physics in California

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in physics.

10 Top California Schools for a Master's in Physics

1
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
16 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a master's degree in physics needs to take a look at Stanford University. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in physics from Stanford University

2
29 Annual Graduates

It's difficult to beat University of California - Berkeley if you want to pursue a master's degree in physics. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in physics from University of California - Berkeley

3
21 Annual Graduates

University of California - Los Angeles is a wonderful choice for individuals pursuing a master's degree in physics. UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles.More information about a master’s in physics from University of California - Los Angeles

4
37 Annual Graduates

Every student who is interested in a master's degree in physics has to look into University of California - Santa Barbara. UCSB is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Santa Barbara.More information about a master’s in physics from University of California - Santa Barbara

5
8 Annual Graduates

Located in the medium-sized city of Pasadena, Caltech is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.More information about a master’s in physics from California Institute of Technology

6
17 Annual Graduates

UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Davis.More information about a master’s in physics from University of California - Davis

7
14 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in physics from University of California - Irvine

8
11 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in physics from California State University - Long Beach

9
14 Annual Graduates

Located in the small city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in physics from University of California - Santa Cruz

9
6 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in physics from San Diego State University

Best Physics Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Physics Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 183 40
Oregon 158 46
Nevada 105 4
Hawaii 85 2
Alaska 52 0

View All Rankings >

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

Physics Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Physics 239
Other Physics 14

Related Major Annual Graduates
Chemistry 248
Geological & Earth Sciences 214
Materials Sciences 49
Astronomy & Astrophysics 39
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology 31
General Physical Sciences 13

Notes and References

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