2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region
14
Ranked Colleges
91
Degrees Awarded
$28,800
Avg Cost*
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 13,674 people earned their degree in physics, making the major the 68th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, physics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $42,960 and had an average of $22,756 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Plains States region, there were 711 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $55,327 and $23,299 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 91 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,829 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region” ranking looked at 14 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in physics. That schools that top this list have a program in physics in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
More Ways to Rank Physics Schools
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region doctor’s degree physics students.
Top 14 Most Focused Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physics in the Plains States Region
Out of the 14 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology landed the #1 spot on the list. This small school is located in Rapid City, South Dakota, and it awarded 1 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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 Physics at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Out of the 14 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Washington University in St Louis landed the #2 spot on the list. WUSTL is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Saint Louis, Missouri. It awarded 11 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% 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%. 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 Physics at Washington University in St Louis
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Missouri University of Science and Technology. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region. Missouri University of Science and Technology is a medium-sized school located in Rolla, Missouri that handed out 4 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Physics at Missouri University of Science and Technology
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is a large school located in Minneapolis, Minnesota that handed out 22 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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 Physics at UMN Twin Cities
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Nebraska - Lincoln. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region. This large school is located in Lincoln, Nebraska, and it awarded 8 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, 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 85%.
Read more about Physics at University of Nebraska - Lincoln
University of Iowa came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region ranking. Iowa City, Iowa is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physics degrees to 12 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, 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 88%.
Read full report on Physics at University of Iowa
University of Kansas did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #7. Located in Lawrence, Kansas, this large public school handed out 9 degrees to qualified doctorate’s physics students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, 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 86%.
Read full report on Physics at KU
Kansas State University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region ranking. K -State is located in Manhattan, Kansas and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 doctorate’s physics degrees to qualified students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at K -State
University of South Dakota did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #9. University of South Dakota is a medium-sized school located in Vermillion, South Dakota that handed out 2 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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 full report on Physics at University of South Dakota
With a ranking of #10, Iowa State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region list. This large school is located in Ames, Iowa, and it awarded 7 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% 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 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Physics at Iowa State
North Dakota State University - Main Campus came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region ranking. North Dakota State University is a public institution located in Fargo, North Dakota. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 2 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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%.
Read full report on Physics at North Dakota State University - Main Campus
University of Missouri - Columbia did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #12. Located in Columbia, Missouri, this large public school handed out 4 degrees to qualified doctorate’s physics students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Mizzou Physics Report
University of Missouri - St Louis ranked #13 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region list. University of Missouri - St Louis is a fairly large public school situated in Saint Louis, Missouri. It awarded 1 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Missouri - St Louis Physics Report
University of North Dakota ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Physics Major in the Plains States Region list. UND is a fairly large public school situated in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It awarded 1 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad 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 University of North Dakota 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
- *Avg Salary and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate 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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