Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy (Income $30-$48k) in the Southwest Region

7 Ranked Colleges
97 Degrees Awarded
$16,800 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking.

Astronomy is the 498th most popular major in the country with 723 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across the Southwest region, there were 97 astronomy graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking analyzed 7 colleges that offered a degree in astronomy. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great astronomy programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the astronomy program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 7 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy (Income $30-$48k) in the Southwest Region

#1

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Arizona. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of Arizona is a large school located in Tucson, Arizona that handed out 40 ’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

University of Arizona did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Arizona is $11,466 for Southwest Region Astronomical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Astronomy at University of Arizona

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Texas A&M University - College Station. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. Texas A&M College Station is a public institution located in College Station, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Texas A&M College Station not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $13,270 for Southwest Region Astronomical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Texas A&M University - College Station.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 2.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy at Texas A&M College Station

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend The University of Texas at Austin. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. The University of Texas at Austin is a large public school situated in Austin, Texas. It awarded 38 ’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UT Austin, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UT Austin is $13,575 for southwest region astronomical sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full The University of Texas at Austin Astronomy Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New Mexico State University - Main Campus. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. This fairly large school is located in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and it awarded 3 ’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

NMSU Main Campus did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $7,006 for Southwest Region Astronomical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend New Mexico State University - Main Campus.

Read more about Astronomy at New Mexico State University - Main Campus

#5

Northern Arizona University

Flagstaff, Arizona

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northern Arizona University landed the #5 spot on the list. NAU is located in Flagstaff, Arizona and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 7 ’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.

NAU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for NAU is $9,799 for southwest region astronomical sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Northern Arizona University Astronomy Report

#6

Baylor University

Waco, Texas

Baylor University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. Baylor University is located in Waco, Texas and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 1 ’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Baylor, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $29,849 for southwest region astronomical sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Baylor.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy at Baylor University

With a ranking of #7, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. Embry-Riddle Prescott is a private not-for-profit institution located in Prescott, Arizona. The school has a small population, and it awarded 2 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Embry-Riddle Prescott did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Embry-Riddle Prescott is $32,661 for Southwest Region Astronomical Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy at Embry-Riddle Prescott

Notes and References

References

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Featured Physical Sciences Schools

Find Schools Near You