Best Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering Degrees in the US by ROI

Top colleges ranked by estimated 20-year net return on investment across all active states. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Programs Analyzed

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

+$502,782

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$38,939

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Grad rate: 85.3%	CA	+$797,513	$89,378	$29,918	$22,500	Full ROI →
2	Massachusetts Institute of Technology Grad rate: 95.5%	MA	+$785,092	$98,421	$79,850	$17,724	Full ROI →
3	San Jose State University Grad rate: 66.2%	CA	+$782,620	$86,270	$25,695	N/A	Full ROI →
4	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Grad rate: 93.2%	MI	+$747,695	$87,512	$33,345	$21,603	Full ROI →
5	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Grad rate: 84.8%	IL	+$679,530	$84,020	$32,134	$23,951	Full ROI →
6	University of Colorado Boulder Grad rate: 74.9%	CO	+$642,593	$82,513	$33,466	$25,039	Full ROI →
7	University of Washington-Seattle Campus Grad rate: 84.0%	WA	+$636,812	$80,707	$30,282	$12,000	Full ROI →
8	New Mexico State University-Main Campus Grad rate: 51.6%	NM	+$635,475	$79,616	$20,930	$24,537	Full ROI →
9	University of Southern California Grad rate: 92.2%	CA	+$623,449	$91,535	$84,678	$21,140	Full ROI →
10	San Diego State University Grad rate: 78.1%	CA	+$619,602	$80,004	$27,357	$23,000	Full ROI →
11	University of Maryland-College Park Grad rate: 88.9%	MD	+$610,753	$79,671	$28,073	$22,500	Full ROI →
12	Western Michigan University Grad rate: 56.5%	MI	+$607,191	$79,982	$28,655	$28,021	Full ROI →
13	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Grad rate: 92.4%	GA	+$607,019	$79,446	$27,797	$22,750	Full ROI →
14	University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Grad rate: 75.7%	OK	+$602,768	$79,660	$28,833	$26,000	Full ROI →
15	University of Florida Grad rate: 90.7%	FL	+$592,260	$77,278	$21,719	$19,573	Full ROI →
16	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Grad rate: 67.4%	AZ	+$589,827	$78,822	$28,047	$25,500	Full ROI →
17	University of Virginia-Main Campus Grad rate: 95.3%	VA	+$589,063	$80,039	$38,132	$14,214	Full ROI →
18	Purdue University-Main Campus Grad rate: 83.1%	IN	+$580,947	$77,012	$22,567	$21,500	Full ROI →
19	West Virginia University Institute of Technology Grad rate: 35.0%	WV	+$573,951	$76,205	$18,343	$27,242	Full ROI →
20	Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide Grad rate: 19.5%	FL	+$573,896	$77,320	$24,015	$26,995	Full ROI →
21	University of California-San Diego Grad rate: 87.7%	CA	+$568,958	$79,151	$36,325	$21,305	Full ROI →
22	University of Arizona Grad rate: 66.9%	AZ	+$565,092	$77,560	$28,543	$23,656	Full ROI →
23	California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Grad rate: 66.5%	CA	+$555,933	$76,106	$22,672	$26,295	Full ROI →
24	West Virginia University Grad rate: 61.7%	WV	+$552,611	$76,205	$23,678	$27,242	Full ROI →
25	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Grad rate: 86.3%	VA	+$544,700	$77,398	$32,040	$26,000	Full ROI →
26	University of California-Irvine Grad rate: 86.3%	CA	+$544,173	$77,712	$36,121	$18,950	Full ROI →
27	Missouri University of Science and Technology Grad rate: 62.6%	MO	+$530,444	$75,185	$25,653	$22,699	Full ROI →
28	Syracuse University Grad rate: 82.4%	NY	+$521,606	$85,982	$80,396	$27,000	Full ROI →
29	Texas A&M University-College Station Grad rate: 83.7%	TX	+$520,499	$75,941	$32,085	$22,208	Full ROI →
30	University of California-Davis Grad rate: 85.7%	CA	+$508,463	$76,323	$38,067	$19,058	Full ROI →
31	California State University-Long Beach Grad rate: 71.3%	CA	+$499,925	$72,766	$20,310	$25,300	Full ROI →
32	Iowa State University Grad rate: 75.0%	IA	+$496,871	$73,299	$23,309	$26,572	Full ROI →
33	The University of Texas at Austin Grad rate: 87.7%	TX	+$487,080	$73,844	$29,842	$22,542	Full ROI →
34	North Carolina State University at Raleigh Grad rate: 84.6%	NC	+$478,983	$72,528	$25,613	$21,574	Full ROI →
35	University at Buffalo Grad rate: 73.5%	NY	+$466,725	$72,822	$29,043	$24,846	Full ROI →
36	Auburn University Grad rate: 80.0%	AL	+$462,313	$73,377	$34,402	$20,458	Full ROI →
37	Wichita State University Grad rate: 51.5%	KS	+$457,106	$70,570	$21,064	$22,250	Full ROI →
38	Ohio State University-Main Campus Grad rate: 87.9%	OH	+$454,878	$72,353	$29,320	$25,853	Full ROI →
39	University of California-Los Angeles Grad rate: 92.6%	CA	+$441,658	$72,694	$36,643	$19,000	Full ROI →
40	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Grad rate: 71.8%	OH	+$439,135	$71,114	$28,783	$20,750	Full ROI →
41	Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach Grad rate: 65.5%	FL	+$430,068	$77,320	$59,972	$26,995	Full ROI →
42	Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott Grad rate: 70.2%	AZ	+$429,324	$77,320	$60,158	$26,995	Full ROI →
43	Mississippi State University Grad rate: 63.0%	MS	+$423,018	$69,725	$26,922	$17,625	Full ROI →
44	The University of Alabama Grad rate: 73.2%	AL	+$421,901	$71,308	$32,024	$26,787	Full ROI →
45	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Grad rate: 84.6%	MN	+$411,990	$70,174	$29,013	$26,250	Full ROI →
46	Saint Louis University Grad rate: 80.5%	MO	+$397,831	$77,500	$69,125	$26,421	Full ROI →
47	The University of Texas at Arlington Grad rate: 55.1%	TX	+$376,659	$67,591	$25,265	$25,260	Full ROI →
48	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Grad rate: 83.5%	NY	+$356,054	$77,477	$79,934	$25,000	Full ROI →
49	University of Central Florida Grad rate: 75.4%	FL	+$325,492	$64,720	$22,819	$27,875	Full ROI →
50	Worcester Polytechnic Institute Grad rate: 88.7%	MA	+$324,698	$75,193	$75,678	$27,000	Full ROI →

How ROI is calculated

20-Year Net ROI = Gross Earnings (salary × 20) − Total Degree Cost − Debt Payoff (×1.35) − Baseline Opportunity Cost ($42,000 × 20). Data from the U.S. College Scorecard.

Find Best Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering Degrees by State

Browse Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.