Physics
Physical Sciences
Median earnings by degree level
| Degree | Median earnings | Typical range | Schools | Clear the bar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's Degree | $77,478 | $67,605 to $87,944 | 108 | 99% |
| Master's Degree | $111,173 | $95,208 to $127,533 | 9 | 100% |
| Doctoral Degree | $141,253 | $132,984 to $166,997 | 9 | 100% |
"Clear the bar" is the share of programs whose graduates out-earn a typical high-school graduate (the federal earnings-premium test). Typical range is the 25th to 75th percentile of program medians.
Job outlook
Projected employment growth +5% (2025 to 2035), about 75,100 openings a year across the occupations this field commonly leads to.
| Occupation | Median pay | Growth | Openings/yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education | $72,040 | -0.2% | 63,500 |
| Natural Sciences Managers | $167,220 | +8.2% | 9,200 |
| Physicists | $172,250 | +7.2% | 1,300 |
| Physics Teachers, Postsecondary | $100,310 | +2.4% | 1,100 |
Occupation pay and outlook: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS wages, Employment Projections). A field maps to several occupations, and the same occupations serve many majors, so these are the jobs this major commonly leads to, not positions reserved for its graduates; the openings should not be added up across majors.
Where this is studied
The 8 colleges where the most students complete a physics program, of 808 that report one. Ordered by number of completions only: this is where people study it, not a judgement about where to.
- University of California-Santa Barbara
- University of Arizona
- University of Washington-Seattle Campus
- New York University
- University of California-Berkeley
- University of Colorado Boulder
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- University of Chicago
Earnings source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (release 2026-06-10), median earnings of graduates measured up to four years after completing. Figures describe past graduates and are never a promise. Method: methodology. Report an error.