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Physics & astronomy at USC

USC graduates about 21 physics & astronomy majors a year. That puts it 53rd of 525 schools we score for physics & astronomy, a standout program at 85 out of 100. Research spending in the field runs about $14 million a year, a rough guide to how many labs and projects undergraduates can join.

85/100Standout#53 of 525 for physics & astronomy →
Graduates a year21under 1% of the class
Research in the field$14Ma year, NSF
Admit rate10%whole school
SAT middle 50%1450–1550whole school

Around USC

USC Physical Education Building (PED), designed by Parkinson & Parkinson as
Physical education building 1Photo: Seauton 13 April 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Ernie Shelton (sculptor), The Wild Bunch - Sporting Sculpture - Campus of Univer
Sporting Sculpture - Campus of University of Southern California - Los Angeles, Photo: Adam Jones, 2012-02-26 12:59, from Kelowna, BC, Canada · CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
"Evelia de Pie", sculpture by Francisco Zúñiga, Anna Bing Arnold Sculpture Garde
Zuniga evelia de pie 1Photo: Seauton 13 April 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
plaque at foot of statue honoring composer Ignacy Jan Paderewski at University o
Usc paderewski plaque 1Photo: Seauton 11 December 2024 · CC BY 4.0 · source

Where physics & astronomy happens

Buildings on campus that fit the field: Social Sciences Building, Physical Education Building, Michelson Center for Convergent Biosciences, Grace Ford Salvatori Hall of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Salvatori Computer Science Center, Stauffer Science Lecture Hall, Wilson Dental Library and Norris Dental Science Center, Hedco Neurosciences Building, Seaver Science Library, Frank R Seaver Science Center.

Named buildings on the campus map: Academic 106 · Dorm 15 · Arts 7 · Library 4 · Athletics 3 · Chapel 2.

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Nearby in the physics & astronomy ranking

  1. Georgetown University 86
  2. University of Wisconsin–Madison 85
  3. New York University 85
  4. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 85
  5. Grinnell College 85
  6. Smith College 85
  7. Emory University 85
  8. The University of Texas–Austin 84

Other strong majors at USC

How the score works

The score is out of 100 and compares USC with every school we score in physics & astronomy. It weighs the school's overall strength; how many students graduate in the major and what share of the class they are; research spending in the field (NSF); early pay against the same major nationally; how many courses the catalog lists; and test scores. 80+ is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid. Sources: US Department of Education (College Scorecard, IPEDS), NSF HERD, each school's current course catalog, OpenStreetMap and Wikimedia Commons.

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