2023 Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans
19
Ranked Colleges
98
Degrees Awarded
$37,600
Avg Cost*
When it comes to choosing a college, veterans have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 765 people earned their degree in astronomy, making the major the 479th most popular in the United States.
This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s” ranking looked at 19 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in astronomy. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality astronomy programs as well as strong veteran support.
To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as veteran satisfaction, veteran affordability, and overall quality of the astronomy program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
One Size Does Not Fit All
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 “Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s
The colleges and universities below are the best for master’s degree vets studying astronomical sciences.
Top 19 Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Ohio State University - Main Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s list. This large school is located in Columbus, Ohio, and it awarded 8 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Ohio State, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.According to our most recent data, Ohio State supports 61,369 students, and 2 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 0 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $0. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Ohio State offers credit for military training for eligible students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, 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 94%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Ohio State University - Main Campus]](/colleges/ohio-state-university-main-campus/student-life/veterans/)
Out of the 19 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #2 spot on the list. U-M is a large public school situated in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It awarded 3 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
U-M also took the #11 spot in our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.Among the 47,907 students enrolled at U-M, 570 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 325 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $27,058. During this same period, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, 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 96%.
Read More…
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 #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s. Texas A&M College Station is located in College Station, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.
Texas A&M College Station also made our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #15.Among the 70,418 students enrolled at Texas A&M College Station, 5 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 4 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $4,925. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Texas A&M College Station]](/colleges/texas-a-and-m-university-college-station/student-life/veterans/)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Arizona. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s list. University of Arizona is a public institution located in Tucson, Arizona. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
University of Arizona did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.Of the 45,601 students enrolled at University of Arizona, 2,131 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1,478 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,880. To help with additional expenses, 31 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
[Read full report on veteran student life at University of Arizona]](/colleges/university-of-arizona/student-life/veterans/)
Out of the 19 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Maryland - College Park landed the #5 spot on the list. College Park, Maryland is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s astronomical sciences degrees to 8 students in 2020-2021.
UMCP did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.According to our most recent data, University of Maryland - College Park supports 40,709 students, and 16 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 13 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $1,716. During this same period, 8 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read More…
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #6 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large public school situated in Champaign, Illinois. It awarded 1 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UIUC also took the #9 spot in our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.According to our most recent data, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign supports 52,679 students, and 10 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 0 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $0. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read More…
Indiana University - Bloomington landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. This large school is located in Bloomington, Indiana, and it awarded 5 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
IU Bloomington not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.Among the 43,064 students enrolled at Indiana University - Bloomington, 1 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $0. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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%.
Full IU Bloomington Veteran Student Life Report
University of Chicago came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. University of Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 3 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UChicago did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.According to our most recent data, UChicago supports 17,834 students, and 241 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 113 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $18,948. During this same period, 58 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read More…
University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. UW Seattle is located in Seattle, Washington and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.
UW Seattle did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #13 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.Among the 48,149 students enrolled at University of Washington - Seattle Campus, 1,283 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 769 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $14,190. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. University of Washington - Seattle Campus offers credit for military training for eligible students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Full UW Seattle Veteran Student Life Report
With a ranking of #10, Cornell University did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s list. Cornell University is located in Ithaca, New York and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.
Cornell did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.Of the 23,620 students enrolled at Cornell, 2 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 2 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $12,780. During this same period, 2 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read More…
University of Virginia - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #11. University of Virginia is located in Charlottesville, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.
University of Virginia also made our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #8.According to our most recent data, University of Virginia supports 25,628 students, and 3 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 0 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $0. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at University of Virginia - Main Campus]](/colleges/university-of-virginia-main-campus/student-life/veterans/)
The University of Texas at Austin landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. The University of Texas at Austin is a large public school situated in Austin, Texas. It awarded 4 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UT Austin did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.Of the 50,476 students enrolled at UT Austin, 7 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $2,893. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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…
San Diego State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school awarded 6 degrees to qualified masters’s astronomical sciences students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our master’s degree vets studying astronomical sciences list, SDSU has also earned the #16 rank in our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.According to our most recent data, San Diego State University supports 36,334 students, and 1,433 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 853 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,806. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at SDSU]](/colleges/san-diego-state-university/student-life/veterans/)
University of Nevada - Las Vegas landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. UNLV is a large public school situated in Las Vegas, Nevada. It awarded 1 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UNLV also made our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #19.Our most recent data shows that 1,594 of the 31,142 students enrolled at University of Nevada - Las Vegas were GI Bill® students, of which 929 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $6,370. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. University of Nevada - Las Vegas offers credit for military training for eligible students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 full report on veteran student life at University of Nevada - Las Vegas]](/colleges/university-of-nevada-las-vegas/student-life/veterans/)
Boston University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking. Boston U is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 1 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Boston U not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #14 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.Our most recent data shows that 15 of the 32,718 students enrolled at Boston U were GI Bill® students, of which 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $25,162. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Boston University]](/colleges/boston-university/student-life/veterans/)
University of Massachusetts Amherst ranked #16 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s list. Located in Amherst, Massachusetts, this large public school handed out 3 degrees to qualified masters’s astronomical sciences students in 2020-2021.
UMass Amherst also took the #12 spot in our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.Of the 31,642 students enrolled at UMass Amherst, 477 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 252 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $8,295. On top of their other funding sources, 21 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read More…
University of California - Santa Cruz did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #17. UC Santa Cruz is a fairly large school located in Santa Cruz, California that handed out 5 masters’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UC Santa Cruz did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #17 on our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list.According to our most recent data, University of California - Santa Cruz supports 19,161 students, and 273 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 114 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,631. During this same period, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UC Santa Cruz Veteran Student Life Report
Northwestern University ranked #18 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s list. Located in Evanston, Illinois, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 8 diplomas to qualified masters’s astronomical sciences students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our master’s degree vets studying astronomical sciences list, Northwestern has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 1 of the 22,603 students enrolled at Northwestern University were GI Bill® students, of which 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $399. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Northwestern]](/colleges/northwestern-university/student-life/veterans/)
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Astronomical Sciences for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #19. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is a private not-for-profit institution located in Troy, New York. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 1 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
RPI also made our “Best Astronomy Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #18.Our most recent data shows that 104 of the 7,501 students enrolled at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute were GI Bill® students, of which 72 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $23,164. In addition to receiving other benefits, 59 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 full report on veteran student life at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute]](/colleges/rensselaer-polytechnic-institute/student-life/veterans/)
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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).
- Veteran-specific data can be found at the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
- 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
- *Avg Salary and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top schools only.
- **GI Bill® student total includes all chapters of the GI Bill® program (e.g., Post-9/11, Montgomery GI Bill, Reserve Education Assistance Program, and Veteran Readiness and Employment)
- 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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