Best Schools for Physics
Physics graduates earn a median of $80,253 within four years of graduating, ranking #106 out of 283 tracked majors — 28% above the median across all fields. There are 134 colleges nationwide with tracked earnings for this major, producing 2,069 recent graduates.
Where you study matters: Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduates earn $131,025 while The University of Texas at San Antonio graduates earn $42,790 — a $88,235 difference. Factors like location, employer networks, co-op programs, and curriculum focus drive this gap. Across all fields, though, which major you pick separates earnings more than which college does.
Early career salary growth is moderate: Physics graduates see an average 7% increase between year 1 and year 2 post-graduation, reflecting career advancement and skill development in the first years after college.
Public vs Private: Physics
Private schools produce $7,706 more in early earnings on average for Physics graduates. Factor in tuition difference to calculate which offers better ROI.
Physics by State
Also by state: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin
Top Physics Schools by Graduate Earnings
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA · Private
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY · Private
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN · Private
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC · Public
Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR · Public
Oregon State University-Cascades Campus
Bend, OR · Public
Whitworth University
Spokane, WA · Private
College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, MA · Private
Le Moyne College
Syracuse, NY · Private
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA · Public
University of California-Irvine
Irvine, CA · Public
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA · Public
University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, CA · Public
University of California-San Diego
La Jolla, CA · Public
Ohio State University-Main Campus
Columbus, OH · Public
Utah State University
Logan, UT · Public
Texas A&M University-College Station
College Station, TX · Public
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Blacksburg, VA · Public
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI · Public
Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania
Shippensburg, PA · Public
University of Massachusetts-Lowell
Lowell, MA · Public
University of Maryland-College Park
College Park, MD · Public
Towson University
Towson, MD · Public
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Charlotte, NC · Public
Southern Arkansas University Main Campus
Magnolia, AR · Public
Willamette University
Salem, OR · Private
West Virginia Wesleyan College
Buckhannon, WV · Private
University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ · Public
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona
Pomona, CA · Public
Portland State University
Portland, OR · Public
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
Eau Claire, WI · Public
Stockton University
Galloway, NJ · Public
California State University-Fullerton
Fullerton, CA · Public
University of Houston
Houston, TX · Public
University of California-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA · Public
University of Wisconsin-River Falls
River Falls, WI · Public
University of California-Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA · Public
Georgia College & State University
Milledgeville, GA · Public
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
Atlanta, GA · Public
Appalachian State University
Boone, NC · Public
Illinois State University
Normal, IL · Public
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Troy, NY · Private
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Erie-Behrend College
Erie, PA · Public
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus
University Park, PA · Public
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Abington
Abington, PA · Public
Arizona State University Campus Immersion
Tempe, AZ · Public
Arizona State University Digital Immersion
Scottsdale, AZ · Public
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL · Public
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
La Crosse, WI · Public
SUNY Oneonta
Oneonta, NY · Public
Showing top 50 of 134 schools. View all or filter by state above.
Majors with Similar Earnings
Frequently Asked Questions
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Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Earnings are median 2 years after graduation for bachelor's degree holders, from the field-of-study file last updated June 2026. Institution-level figures elsewhere on the site come from the June 2026 release — Scorecard publishes the two separately.
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