Roster of Physics Departments with Enrollment and Degree Data, 2023

The Physics Roster is a listing of all degree-granting physics departments in the US. It includes enrollment data for the fall of 2023 and the degrees conferred during the 2022-23 academic year. These data come from AIP’s annual departmental survey of Enrollments and Degrees.

The number of physics bachelor’s degrees awarded in the class of 2023 (8,295) represents the third year of decline following two decades of steady increases. This decline represents a drop of 3.7% from the previous year and an almost 11% from the all-time high of 9,296 degrees conferred in the class of 2020. Departments whose highest physics degree offered is a bachelor’s or master’s have experienced the greatest declines (see figure on page 19). Declines are expected to continue for at least a year as undergraduate physics
enrollment numbers at the senior level have also declined.

The 1,976 physics PhDs conferred in the class of 2023 represents about a 2% decline from the previous year. (see figure on page 19). Non-US citizens comprise 48% of the PhDs conferred in the class of 2023. The number of PhDs conferred is likely to continue to slowly increase as the number of first-year students
enrolling at PhD-granting departments has slowly been increasing.