Physical Sciences

Stem Major

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Total Degrees​
Awarded in 2016

51,276

growing 2.4%

Median In-State​
Public Tuition

$6,924

growing 4.15%

Median Out-of-State​
Private Tuition

$36,890

growing 3.62%

Average Wage

$106,688

growing 3.21%

People in Workforce

1.08M

growing 0.935%

Average Employee Age

45.4

growing 0.0653%

About

Institutions

Employment

Diversity

Skills

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Physical Sciences degree recipients are New York, NY, Seattle, WA, and Los Angeles, CA. The locations with a relatively high number of Physical Sciences degree recipients are Haverford College, PA, Socorro, NM, and Naval Academy, MD. The most common degree awarded to students studying Physical Sciences is a bachelors degree.

Photo by Frank Weber

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Physical Sciences and the types of students that study this field. University of Washington-Seattle Campus awards the most degrees in Physical Sciences in the US, but Richard Bland College of William and Mary and California Institute of Technology have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Physical Sciences.

Tuition costs for Physical Sciences majors are, on average, $6,924 for in-state public colleges, and $36,890 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Physical Sciences programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (700 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (33,671 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Physical Sciences

  1. University of Washington-Seattle Campus

  2. Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus

  3. University of California-Berkeley

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Physical Sciences, is Public, 4-year or above (33,671 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Physical Sciences programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

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Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$6,924

Median In-State Public

$36,890

Median Out of State Private

University of Washington-Seattle Campus has the most Physical Sciences degree recipients, with 528 degrees awarded in 2016.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Physical Sciences.

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Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

  1. Richard Bland College of William and Mary

    97.2%

  2. California Institute of Technology

    23%

  3. Harvey Mudd College

    16.3%

Out of all institutions that offer Physical Sciences programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Richard Bland College of William and Mary and California Institute of Technology have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Physical Sciences, with 97.2% and 23%, respectively.

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Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Physical Sciences

  1. Los Angeles County, CA

  2. Maricopa County, AZ

  3. King County, WA

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Physical Sciences by year.

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Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

  1. Allen County, OH

  2. Virginia Beach city, VA

  3. Bell County, TX

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Physical Sciences.

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Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Physical Sciences graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Physical Sciences majors is $106,688 and the most common occupations are Postsecondary teachers, Miscellaneous managers, and Physicians & surgeons.

The industry that employs the most Physical Sciences majors is Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Offices of physicians.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

$106,688

Average Wage in Workforce

± $2,500

3.21%

1 Year Growth

± 3.23%

The average salary for Physical Sciences majors is $106,688 and the most common occupations are Postsecondary teachers, Miscellaneous managers, and Physicians & surgeons.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Physical Sciences majors.

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Highest Paying Locations

Highest Paying Pumas

  1. Between Loop I-610 & Beltway TX-8 PUMA, TX (79500US4804615)

  2. Westchester County (Northeast) PUMA, NY

  3. South of I-10 & West of TX-6 PUMA, TX

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Physical Sciences majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Physical Sciences majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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Occupations

Most Common

The most common occupations Physical Sciences majors, by number of employees, are Postsecondary teachers, Miscellaneous managers, and Physicians & surgeons.

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Most Specialized

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Physical Sciences majors working as Astronomers & physicists, Environmental scientists & geoscientists, and Chemists & materials scientists.

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Highest Paid

The highest paid occupations by median income for Physical Sciences majors are Physicians & surgeons, Aircraft pilots & flight engineers, and Chief executives & legislators.

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Occupations by Share

1.08M

2017 Workforce

± 25,464

0.935%

1 Year Growth

± 3.3%

The number of Physical Sciences graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 0.935%, from 1.07M in 2016 to 1.08M in 2017.

The largest single share of Physical Sciences graduates go on to work as Postsecondary teachers (9.35%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Physical Sciences by share of the total number of graduates.

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Industries

Most Common

The most common industries that employ Physical Sciences majors, by number of employees, are Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, Hospitals, and Scientific research & development services.

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Highest Paid

The highest paying industries of Physical Sciences majors, by average wage, are Offices of physicians, Securities, commodities, funds, trusts & other financial investments, and Water transportation.

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Industries by Share

1.08M

2017 Workforce

± 25,464

0.935%

1 Year Growth

± 3.3%

The number of Physical Sciences graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 0.935%, from 1.07M in 2016 to 1.08M in 2017.

The industry which employs the most Physical Sciences graduates by share is Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, followed by Hospitals. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Physical Sciences.

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Specialty Locations

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Physical Sciences majors

  1. West Hollywood & Beverly Hills Cities PUMA, CA

  2. Carr 2-Carr 111 PUMA, PR

  3. Carr 2-Carr 100 PUMA, PR

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Physical Sciences majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Physical Sciences majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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Diversity

Demographic information on those who earn a degree in Physical Sciences in the US. The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Physical Sciences is 45.4, and the most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Male employees are more likely to hold Physical Sciences degrees, and White students earn the majority (29,452) of the degrees.

Workforce Age

45.4

Average Age in 2017

± 0.33 Years

0.0653%

1 Year Change

± 1.02%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Physical Sciences. The most common ages of employees with this major are 31 and 30 years old, which represent 2.7% and 2.68% of the population, respectively.

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Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Physical Sciences are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Research Doctorate.

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Workforce Degrees

The most common degree types held by the working population in Physical Sciences are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Doctorate degree.

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Gender Imbalance for Common Institutions

Male (62%)

Most Common Gender with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by gender at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Physical Sciences.

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Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

  1. White

    29,452 degrees awarded

  2. Non-resident Alien

    6,666 degrees awarded

  3. Hispanic or Latino

    4,807 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Physical Sciences for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

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Race & Ethnicity by Gender

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Gender Combination

  1. White Male

    13,188 degrees awarded

  2. White Female

    7,535 degrees awarded

  3. Hispanic or Latino Male

    1,748 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by gender for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Physical Sciences. White Male students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and gender.

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Global Diversity

Most Common Countries of Origin

  1. China

    53,111 degree recipients

  2. India

    47,868 degree recipients

  3. Korea

    13,049 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

  1. Norway

    8.19 times more than expected

  2. Sri Lanka

    5.9 times more than expected

  3. United Kingdom, not specified

    5.21 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Norway that hold Physical Sciences degrees (8.19 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is China (53,111 degree recipients).

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Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Physical Sciences field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Physical Sciences majors need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Physical Sciences majors need more than the average amount of Science, Programming, and Technology Design.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Physical Sciences majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Science is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Writing, and Critical Thinking are the three most important skills for people in the field.

Radar Distribution

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Bar Chart

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