2023 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Physics in California
22
Ranked Colleges
253
Degrees Awarded
$33,500
Avg Cost*
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 “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Physics is the 68th most popular major in the country with 13,674 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. 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 California, there were 3,224 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $41,268 and $18,506 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 253 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $62,974 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California” ranking, we looked at 22 colleges that offer a degree in physics. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in physics.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
More Ways to Rank Physics Schools
The physics 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 “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California”.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california master’s degree physics students.
Top 22 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Physics in California
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California Institute of Technology. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s physics degrees to 8 students in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate 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. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Physics at Caltech
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Santa Barbara. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. This large school is located in Santa Barbara, California, and it awarded 37 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at UCSB
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. Stanford University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Stanford, California. It awarded 16 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Physics at Stanford
Out of the 22 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #4 spot on the list. University of California - Santa Cruz is a fairly large public school situated in Santa Cruz, California. It awarded 14 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full UC Santa Cruz Physics Report
Out of the 22 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Riverside landed the #5 spot on the list. UCR is a large public school situated in Riverside, California. It awarded 17 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at University of California - Riverside
With a ranking of #6, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. UC Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 29 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%.
Full University of California - Berkeley Physics Report
San Francisco State University landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. Located in San Francisco, California, this large public school awarded 13 degrees to qualified masters’s physics students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad 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%.
Read more about Physics at SFSU
University of California - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking, coming in at #8. UCLA is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 21 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.6% 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%.
Full UCLA Physics Report
With a ranking of #9, University of California - Davis did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. University of California - Davis is located in Davis, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 17 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at University of California - Davis
California State University - Northridge came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. CSUN is a public institution located in Northridge, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 13 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at CSUN
University of California - Irvine landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. UC Irvine is a public institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 14 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of California - Irvine Physics Report
California State University - Long Beach came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. California State University - Long Beach is a large public school situated in Long Beach, California. It awarded 11 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. 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%.
Full CSULB Physics Report
California State University - Los Angeles came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. California State University - Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at California State University - Los Angeles
University of California - Merced ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. UC Merced is a medium-sized public school situated in Merced, California. It awarded 2 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%.
Read full report on Physics at University of California - Merced
San Jose State University landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. San Jose State is located in San Jose, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 8 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad 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 full report on Physics at San Jose State University
With a ranking of #16, California State University - Fresno did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. California State University - Fresno is a large school located in Fresno, California that handed out 4 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 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 Physics at Fresno State
California State University - Fullerton did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking, coming in at #17. California State University - Fullerton is located in Fullerton, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 masters’s physics degrees to qualified students.
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 undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Physics at Cal State Fullerton
San Diego State University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California ranking. This large school is located in San Diego, California, and it awarded 6 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. 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%.
Read full report on Physics at SDSU
With a ranking of #19, University of California - San Diego did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. This large school is located in La Jolla, California, and it awarded 5 masters’s physics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad 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%.
Read full report on Physics at University of California - San Diego
University of Southern California ranked #20 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Physics Major in California list. University of Southern California is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The undergrad 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 Physics at University of Southern California