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2022 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy in Massachusetts (With Aid)

5 Ranked Colleges
65 Degrees Awarded
$23,200 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 723 people earned their degree in astronomy, making the major the 498th most popular in the United States.

Across Massachusetts, there were 65 astronomy graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 5 colleges that offer 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.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the astronomy program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Astronomy Schools

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for massachusetts astronomical sciences students with aid.

Top 5 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy in Massachusetts (With Aid)

#1

Harvard University

Cambridge, Massachusetts

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Harvard University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid list. Harvard University is a large school located in Cambridge, Massachusetts that handed out 4 ’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Harvard, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Astronomy Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. It costs about $15,386 for Massachusetts Astronomical Sciences students with aid per year to attend Harvard University.

With a student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Harvard Astronomy Report

#2

Williams College

Williamstown, Massachusetts

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Williams College. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid list. This small school is located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, and it awarded 2 ’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Williams also made our “Best Astronomy Schools in Massachusetts” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend Williams is $19,480 for massachusetts astronomical sciences students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Williams College Astronomy Report

#3

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Amherst, Massachusetts

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Massachusetts Amherst landed the #3 spot on the list. Amherst, Massachusetts is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s astronomical sciences degrees to 21 students in 2019-2020.

UMass Amherst also made our “Best Astronomy Schools in Massachusetts” list, coming in at #5. The yearly cost to attend UMass Amherst is $22,501 for massachusetts astronomical sciences students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Full UMass Amherst Astronomy Report

#4

Boston University

Boston, Massachusetts

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Boston University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid list. Boston U is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 29 ’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Boston U also took the #2 spot in our “Best Astronomy Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Boston University is $30,259 for Massachusetts Astronomical Sciences students with aid.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The low student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 Boston University

#5

Smith College

Northampton, Massachusetts

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Smith College. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid. Smith College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Northampton, Massachusetts. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Smith not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Astronomy Schools in Massachusetts” list. The estimated yearly cost for Smith is $28,305 for Massachusetts Astronomical Sciences students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read more about Astronomy at Smith

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.

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