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2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California

10 Ranked Colleges
816 Degrees Awarded
$33,700 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 52,879 people earned their degree in physical sciences, making the major the 18th most popular in the United States. 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” ranking analyzed 10 colleges that offered a degree 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.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the physical sciences program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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” list to help you make the college decision.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools 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

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California.

Top 12 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physical Sciences in California

#1

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 69 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Los Angeles are $28,131, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full University of California - Los Angeles Physical Sciences Report

#7 in overall quality

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - San Diego landed the #2 spot on the list. La Jolla, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 100 students in 2019-2020.

UCSD not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UCSD are $28,631.

Full UCSD Physical Sciences Report

#3

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California
#6 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 #3 for the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California. Located in Santa Barbara, California, this large public school awarded 61 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s physical sciences students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree physical sciences students list, UCSB has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UCSB are $28,670, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full University of California - Santa Barbara Physical Sciences Report

#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Davis. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. UC Davis is a large public school situated in Davis, California. It awarded 50 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california doctor’s degree physical sciences students list, UC Davis has also earned the #5 rank 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 University of California - Davis are $28,700.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at UC Davis

#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. University of California - Irvine is a public institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 75 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Irvine are $28,456, but some majors have different tuition rates.

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

#4 in overall quality

With a ranking of #6, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to 139 students in 2019-2020.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Berkeley are $29,347, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at UC Berkeley

#7

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#9 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, San Diego State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. San Diego State University is located in San Diego, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 9 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

SDSU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at SDSU are $18,658, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at SDSU

#10 in overall quality

University of California - Riverside did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking, coming in at #7. University of California - Riverside is located in Riverside, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 49 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

UCR did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Riverside are $28,686, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full University of California - Riverside Physical Sciences Report

#8

University of California - Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, California
#9 in overall quality

University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking, coming in at #8. UC Santa Cruz is located in Santa Cruz, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 40 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Santa Cruz, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Santa Cruz are $28,952, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Physical Sciences at UC Santa Cruz

#9

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

Stanford University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California ranking, coming in at #9. Located in Stanford, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 111 degrees to qualified doctorate’s physical sciences students in 2019-2020.

Stanford did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Stanford University are $55,011, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full Stanford Physical Sciences Report

#12 in overall quality

With a ranking of #9, University of California - Merced did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. UC Merced is a medium-sized public school situated in Merced, California. It awarded 11 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Merced not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC Merced are $43,854, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at UC Merced

#10

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#2 in overall quality

With a ranking of #10, California Institute of Technology did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physical Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in California list. This small school is located in Pasadena, California, and it awarded 43 doctorate’s physical sciences degrees 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

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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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