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2022 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physical Sciences (Income $30-$48k) in California

12 Ranked Colleges
816 Degrees Awarded
$33,700 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Physical Sciences is the 18th most popular major in the country with 52,879 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, physical sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $38,122 and had an average of $22,339 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 8,509 physical sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,072 and $18,572 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 816 physical sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $71,544 and $133,402 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 12 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in physical sciences. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great physical sciences programs and 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 physical sciences program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Physical Sciences Schools

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 Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 12 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physical Sciences (Income $30-$48k) in California

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Stanford University is a fairly large school located in Stanford, California that handed out 111 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree physical sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, Stanford has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Stanford are $55,011, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full Stanford Physical Sciences Report

#2

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#2 in overall quality

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, California Institute of Technology landed the #2 spot on the list. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 43 students in 2019-2020.

Caltech not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Caltech are $56,649, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at California Institute of Technology

#4 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k. University of California - Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 139 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree physical sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Berkeley are $29,347, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of California - Berkeley

#4

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 69 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UCLA are $28,131, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at UCLA

#8 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Irvine. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k. Located in Irvine, California, this large public school awarded 75 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s physical sciences students in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine also took the #8 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UC Irvine are $28,456.

Full University of California - Irvine Physical Sciences Report

#6

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California
#6 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Barbara ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. UCSB is a large school located in Santa Barbara, California that handed out 61 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCSB also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #6. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Santa Barbara are $28,670, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Physical Sciences at University of California - Santa Barbara

#5 in overall quality

University of California - Davis came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. University of California - Davis is a large school located in Davis, California that handed out 50 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Davis not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Davis are $28,700, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Physical Sciences at UC Davis

#10 in overall quality

University of California - Riverside ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. This large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 49 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCR also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #10. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Riverside are $28,686.

Full UCR Physical Sciences Report

#9

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#9 in overall quality

San Diego State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #9. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school handed out 9 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s physical sciences students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SDSU, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at San Diego State University are $18,658.

Read more about Physical Sciences at SDSU

#7 in overall quality

University of California - San Diego landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This large school is located in La Jolla, California, and it awarded 100 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCSD, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UCSD are $28,631, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Physical Sciences at UCSD

#12 in overall quality

University of California - Merced ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. UC Merced is located in Merced, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 11 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

UC Merced also took the #12 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Merced are $43,854, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at UC Merced

#12

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#9 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Santa Cruz, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 40 students in 2019-2020.

UC Santa Cruz also made our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Santa Cruz are $28,952.

Full UC Santa Cruz Physical Sciences 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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to NASA.

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