A master’s in physics is a smaller and more varied market than the bachelor’s. Research careers in physics run through the doctorate, so the terminal master’s exists mainly for three groups: working professionals who need graduate physics for an applied job, high school teachers earning graduate credit in their subject, and students using a master’s as a bridge into a doctoral program or into engineering. Online availability is thinner still, and it concentrates in applied, computational, and teaching-oriented tracks rather than in experimental physics.
The listing below shows related online programs. Esy’s inventory for this specialty covers bachelor’s-level physics, so the master’s programs shown are drawn from adjacent fields such as engineering, applied science, and education. That is worth knowing before you compare: a genuinely online experimental physics master’s is rare, while an online applied or computational track is realistic.
Quick answers
What is an online master’s in physics?
Usually a 30 to 36 credit graduate degree in physics or applied physics, delivered as coursework in classical and quantum mechanics, electrodynamics, statistical mechanics, and a specialization, with either a thesis, a project, or a comprehensive exam at the end. Online versions lean toward applied, computational, and instructional tracks because those need no laboratory bench.
Do I need a master’s to work as a physicist?
The title generally requires a doctorate. Physicists had a median annual wage of $172,250 and 1,700 annual openings across the occupation (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS; BLS Employment Projections, 2024-2034), and those research positions are typically filled by PhD holders, often after a postdoctoral appointment. A master’s changes your standing for applied technical roles, teaching, and doctoral admission rather than for research staff positions.
Is a physics master’s useful for high school teachers?
Yes, and it is one of the clearest cases. Many districts pay on a salary schedule that recognizes graduate credit, and a subject-area master’s deepens content knowledge in a shortage subject. It does not substitute for a state teaching license. The education program guide covers licensure routes.
Can I do a physics master’s without a physics bachelor’s?
Sometimes, with prerequisites. Programs usually expect the undergraduate core: classical mechanics, electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics, and the associated mathematics. Applicants from engineering, mathematics, or chemistry are often admitted conditionally and asked to complete specific undergraduate courses first.
How long does it take?
Two years part-time to two years full-time is the common range, with part-time students often taking three. Thesis tracks take longer than coursework tracks because the research schedule is not fully under your control.
Should I do a master’s or go straight to a PhD?
In the United States, physics doctoral programs commonly admit students directly from a bachelor’s and award a master’s along the way. A standalone master’s makes sense if your undergraduate record needs strengthening, if you want an applied credential without a research career, or if you are already working and cannot relocate.
At a Glance
- Common degree titles: MS in Physics, MS in Applied Physics, MS in Physics Education, MS in Medical Physics, MEng in a related applied field
- Typical duration: About 2 years full-time; longer part-time
- Credits: Commonly 30 to 36 semester hours
- Core skills: Graduate-level mechanics, electrodynamics, quantum theory, computational modeling, research methods
- Accreditation: No programmatic accreditor for general physics; medical physics programs are accredited separately by CAMPEP
For a full map of this program area, start here: Physics Program Guide
Schools to compare
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
- Graduation rate 30%
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
- Average net price (lower is better) 20%
- Retention rate 15%
- Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
93%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$102,772
Avg net price
$12,116/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 98%
- Programs offered: 64
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
97%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$124,080
Avg net price
$13,807/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 98%
- Programs offered: 100
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Acceptance rate
11%
Graduation rate
93%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$92,446
Avg net price
$13,481/yr
TuitionIn‑state$16,347
Out‑of‑state$50,547
Key stats
- Retention rate: 97%
- Programs offered: 127
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
98%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$110,066
Avg net price
$6,128/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 98%
- Programs offered: 47
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
95%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$128,566
Avg net price
$16,075/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 98%
- Programs offered: 30
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Acceptance rate
7%
Graduation rate
95%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$82,735
Avg net price
$14,398/yr
TuitionIn‑state$67,832
Out‑of‑state$67,832
Key stats
- Retention rate: 97%
- Programs offered: 40
Source:Accreditor: New England Commission on Higher Education · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
96%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$88,665
Avg net price
$17,716/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 97%
- Programs offered: 38
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 97%
- Programs offered: 28
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Typical topics in a master’s program
| Course Topic |
What You Learn |
| Graduate Classical Mechanics |
Lagrangian and Hamiltonian dynamics at a level beyond the undergraduate course |
| Electrodynamics |
Maxwell’s equations in media, radiation, and relativistic formulations |
| Quantum Mechanics |
Formal operator methods, scattering, approximation techniques |
| Statistical Mechanics |
Ensembles, phase transitions, and transport |
| Computational Physics |
Numerical simulation, data analysis, and high-performance computing basics |
| Specialization electives |
Optics and photonics, condensed matter, medical physics, materials, or astrophysics |
| Physics pedagogy (education tracks) |
How students learn physics concepts and how to assess that learning |
| Thesis, project, or comprehensive exam |
The capstone requirement, which varies sharply by program |
The main master’s pathways
Applied and computational physics
The most common online-friendly track. Coursework centers on modeling, simulation, instrumentation, and a technical specialization, with a project rather than an experimental thesis. Graduates work in engineering-adjacent roles. Engineers, all other, had a median annual wage of $122,930 with 9,300 annual openings (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS; BLS Employment Projections, 2024-2034).
Physics education
Built for practicing teachers. The content is graduate physics plus pedagogy, delivered on a schedule that assumes you are teaching during the day. It advances you on a district salary schedule and improves your content knowledge; it does not certify you. Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education, had a median annual wage of $72,040 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS).
Medical physics
A distinct professional field with its own accreditation through CAMPEP, its own residency structure, and its own board certification. If clinical work with imaging or radiation therapy is the goal, verify CAMPEP accreditation before enrolling, because certification routes depend on it. Purely online delivery is limited by clinical requirements.
Bridge to a doctorate
A master’s used to strengthen a doctoral application: graduate coursework, a research project, and letters from faculty who have seen you do research. Be candid with programs about this intent, because thesis supervision and research access matter more here than course grades. If you are aiming at a research career, read how to become a physicist first.
Skills and outcomes to compare
Before you choose, get clear on what the degree is supposed to change. A master’s in physics does not license anything outside medical physics, and it does not by itself qualify you for research staff positions. What it can do:
- Give you graduate-level analytical training that employers in modeling, simulation, and instrumentation recognize
- Move you on a teaching salary schedule and deepen subject knowledge in a shortage subject
- Repair or strengthen an undergraduate record ahead of doctoral applications
- Move you laterally from another quantitative field into physics-adjacent technical work
- Add a specialization such as optics, materials, or computation that your bachelor’s did not cover
Physics teachers, postsecondary, had a median annual wage of $100,310 with 1,300 annual openings and 2.5 percent projected growth (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS; BLS Employment Projections, 2024-2034). Full-time college faculty positions in physics normally require a doctorate; community college teaching is the setting where a master’s is most often sufficient, and those positions are competitive.
How to compare online master’s programs
- Confirm the format is real. Ask whether every required course, including any laboratory or research component, is available online, and whether the thesis option is open to distance students.
- Check the capstone. A comprehensive exam, a project, and a thesis lead to different places. Only the thesis reliably produces the research experience doctoral programs want.
- Look at faculty and specialization. A master’s is only as strong as the specialization it gives you. Read the faculty list for people working in your area.
- Ask about course rotation. Graduate physics courses run infrequently online. Confirm the two-year plan before you enroll.
- Verify accreditation. Recognized institutional accreditation through the U.S. Department of Education database is the general check. For medical physics, CAMPEP accreditation is the additional and decisive one.
- Match the degree to the outcome. If the destination is engineering practice, compare an engineering master’s instead. If it is software or data work, compare computer science.
A terminal master’s in physics is not a smaller doctorate. Programs that lead to research careers are doctoral programs, and they usually fund students through teaching or research assistantships. If a research career is the goal, apply to doctoral programs directly and treat the master’s as a fallback rather than a first step.
Admissions requirements
Most programs ask for a bachelor’s from an accredited institution, an undergraduate physics background covering mechanics, electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics, and mathematics through differential equations, and letters of recommendation. Some require the subject-area graduate exam; many have dropped it. Applicants from adjacent fields such as mathematics, chemistry, or engineering are commonly admitted with prerequisite coursework attached to the offer.
Prepare a statement that names the specialization and the faculty you want to work with. Physics admissions committees read for a specific fit, not for general enthusiasm.
Master’s vs a bachelor’s pathway
If you do not yet hold an undergraduate physics degree, start with the online bachelor’s in physics and be realistic about the laboratory requirement. If you hold a bachelor’s in a quantitative field and want applied technical work, an applied master’s is usually the faster route than a second bachelor’s. If you want a research career under the physicist title, the master’s is not the credential; the doctorate is.
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Data verified: September 5, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
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