25 Best Value Schools for Aerospace Engineering Degrees

The 124-credit aerospace engineering degree offered by University of Maryland-College Park provides graduates with the knowledge and skills required to pursue employment and lifelong learning in the aerospace industry. The first three years of undergraduate study consist of a combination of general education, math, and science courses. Students take at least one aerospace course each semester, beginning with Aerospace Seminar 1. In the final two semesters, students engage in upper-level courses in one of two tracks: air or space. All students use their senior year to complete a senior design project, culminating in an oral presentation and defense to faculty, an advisory board, and invited professionals.
Net Price: $14,833/yr
Score: 81.89

Aerospace engineers devote themselves to developing vehicles that face extreme conditions: space and underwater exploration, high-speed land travel, and unmanned aircraft. California State Polytechnic University-Pomona prepares students to face these challenges head-on by incorporating fields as diverse as thermodynamics and control system theory into an integrated undergraduate curriculum. Students and researchers have access to 70 specialized labs—including a $3.5 million Subsonic and Supersonic Wind Tunnel Complex—which produce nearly 500 undergraduate design projects each year! Considering that one in 14 engineers in California have a degree from CalPoly Pomona, it is easy to believe that this is one of the top schools for aerospace engineering in the state and even the nation.
Net Price: $9,824/yr
Score: 80.66

Iowa State University aerospace alumni include NASA astronauts, university professors, and CEOs, presidents, and founders of technology companies. With laboratory work emphasizing practical skills, and classes utilizing industry-standard equipment and research, Iowa State's aerospace engineering degree requirements develop real-world preparation for jobs within, and beyond, the fields of air and space engineering. Students complete a program of math, science, and engineering, contributing to an overall fundamental knowledge of the principles of aerodynamics, flight dynamics, propulsion, structural mechanics, and space technologies. During students' senior years, groups form simulated industrial design teams, who utilize their combined knowledge in a major aircraft or space design project.
Net Price: $13,899/yr
Score: 80.36

Established in 1936, the University of Minnesota's Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics BAEM was one of the first 10 accredited aerospace engineering degree programs in the country. Since then, the program has continuously grown to meet the emerging complexities of the field. UMN's robust Aerospace Engineering Department is home to: high-tech teaching and research laboratories; computer facilities for modeling and simulation; and ample funding for scholarships, grants, and student organizations. From the prestigious Boeing Scholarship and valuable internship and cooperative work programs to the ambitious UMN Solar Vehicle Project, this university provides aerospace engineering students with every opportunity to realize their goals.
Net Price: $15,589/yr
Score: 79.69

Landing top aerospace engineering school rankings from U.S. News in both the graduate and undergraduate categories, the University of Colorado-Boulder is an established leader in the intersection of aerospace education and research. From bioastronautics to path-finding drone development, research at UC Boulder is routinely pioneering and interdisciplinary, offering opportunities for ambitious thinkers to cut their teeth while they are still in school. And with 42 full-time faculty members for just 400 undergraduates, aerospace engineering students at UC Boulder can feel confident they will receive the attention they need to grow into successful, independent thinkers.
Net Price: $21,053/yr
Score: 79.61

Aerospace engineering is a dynamic field that encompasses an eclectic set of challenging areas ranging from air and earth to water and space travel. At the University of Florida, the Aerospace Engineering Department addresses this educational dilemma by offering two distinct tracks in aeronautical and astronautical engineering for undergraduates. In the former branch, students engage with design problems associated with atmospheric aircraft like jets and helicopters, while the latter focuses primarily on rockets and satellites. Students in both programs develop the core competencies required for all mechanical engineering disciplines, including thermodynamics, structural design and analysis, and materials science.
Net Price: $14,786/yr
Score: 78.04

From government and industry work to laboratory research, many challenging and stimulating career trajectories await Aerospace Engineering graduates from the University of Notre Dame. The "standard program" at this top school for aerospace engineering encompasses a huge breadth of material that spans from advanced mathematics and physics to interdisciplinary engineering coursework. The department also encourages engineering students to study abroad at one of Notre Dame's 10 affiliated universities around the world. This multifaceted, rigorous approach to learning helps form graduates who possess an enhanced cultural awareness, understand diverse perspectives, and will thrive in a variety of professions both in and out of the engineering field.
Net Price: $27,025/yr
Score: 76.98

With one of the top aerospace engineering school rankings from U.S. News, the University of Michigan is a hub not only for leading faculty researchers and educators, but many of the brightest and most enterprising young scholars in the field as well. Michigan's status as a world-class research institution also opens the doors to a huge range of interdisciplinary research opportunities for undergraduate aerospace engineering students, allowing them to customize their education in many ways to suit their interests and goals. When they graduate, these students join the largest alumni base of aerospace engineers in the nation - an unparalleled advantage for professional and academic networking.
Net Price: $15,850/yr
Score: 76.44

Conventional wisdom holds that the sky is the limit. Not so for the Aerospace Engineering Department at Oklahoma State University. Students in this top aerospace engineering degree program look beyond and beneath our atmosphere, learning about the mechanics that underlie extraterrestrial vehicles, satellites, submarines, and everything in between. At the core of OSU's aerospace engineering program is design, which integrates pure science, laboratory experiments, and hands-on construction to address the kind of open-ended problems that face practicing engineers in everyday life. But the skills that aerospace engineering students acquire in their education at OSU are not only applicable to one field; these highly-trained graduates are equally equipped for advanced degrees in medicine, dentistry, law, and business.
Net Price: $14,750/yr
Score: 75.39

When California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo's top Aerospace Engineering degree program opened its doors in 1927, it exemplified a hands-on approach to technical education by teaching students comprehensive aircraft maintenance in addition to the technical principles of aerodynamics and propulsion. As the field has evolved to include astronautics, fluid dynamics, and materials science, CalPoly's aerospace engineering department has retained its pragmatic edge by providing research access in advanced areas to all students. From Flight Simulation to Nano-Satellite design, CalPoly students have numerous opportunities to engage with faculty in cutting-edge work at the frontier of modern engineering.
Net Price: $16,783/yr
Score: 75.28

In the past few years, the University of Virginia has revolutionized its top aerospace engineering degree program to better suit the professional needs of graduates preparing to enter the workforce. A combination of fundamental science and theory courses intersect with required laboratory sessions to give students the opportunity to apply their knowledge to contemporary problems in the field using state-of-the-art technical equipment and computer modeling/simulation. But what really sets Virginia's engineering program apart is the breadth of elective offerings that focus on professional development. Courses in professional ethics, product liability, and international communications ensure that graduates can function as capable leaders as well as technical innovators.
Net Price: $14,069/yr
Score: 75.27

Since 1983, Tuskegee University has been the only historically black institution of higher learning in the country to offer an accredited aerospace engineering degree. But that's not the only reason Tuskegee is such a great resource for enterprising rocket scientists. Tuskegee couples rigorous STEM education with a broad liberal arts curriculum that challenges students to think deeply as well as laterally. This invaluable skill helps Tuskegee grads stand out in a field that not only thrives on innovation, but is incredibly complex and varied (subtopics cover everything from propulsion and fluid dynamics to composites and structural dynamics). As a result, students learn how to become communicative researchers who can collaborate not only with other engineers in their own specialized niche, but also with scientists and technicians from other disciplines.
Net Price: $28,414/yr
Score: 73.93

The United States Air Force Academy may offer the most affordable aerospace engineering degree in the country, but accessing this phenomenal deal is not easy. To take advantage of the Academy's free tuition, freshman applicants must pass a stringent set of admission requirements, including a physical examination and Congressional nomination - in addition to top grades and test scores. And although a mere 17% are accepted, over 80% choose to attend. Those statistics alone make a strong statement about the caliber and value of a USAFA education. Once admitted, students, or "cadets," receive full military training in addition to a world-class education in aeronautics. And at the end of four years, Academy grads automatically enter the U.S. Air Force as junior commissioned officers.
Net Price: $0/yr
Score: 73.71

With a median annual wage of over $100,000 a year, aerospace engineers enjoy their fair share of compensation. But even a six figure salary pales in comparison to their contributions to the modern world in the way of air travel, satellite telecommunication, and military defense. NCSU helps students join the ranks of aerospace engineers with advanced coursework across topics such as thermodynamics, rocket propulsion, and aerodynamics, as well as accelerated degree tracks like their five-year BS/MS program. And with 30+ student organizations for engineers—including the High Power Rocketry and Model Aviation clubs - this university guarantees that learning extends beyond the classroom door.
Net Price: $13,579/yr
Score: 73.36

Mississippi State University offers a comprehensive, world-class undergraduate aerospace engineering program with the intimacy and opportunity of a small college. With small, informal classes, MSU students have unprecedented access to professors outside of class and are a regular feature of faculty research. In fact, this top school for aerospace engineering is home to the largest university flight lab in the nation. Coupled with the fact that MSU enrolls over a thousand students in their cooperative education program, this integrated approach grants students an overwhelming advantage in the job market in both industry and academia.
Net Price: $15,297/yr
Score: 72.55