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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics in Massachusetts (With Aid)

6 Ranked Colleges
65 Degrees Awarded
$23,000 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor's in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 1,268 people earned their degree in astronomy and astrophysics, making the major the 222nd most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, astronomy and astrophysics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $27,700 and had an average of $21,346 in loans still to pay off.

Across Massachusetts, there were 117 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $25,857 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 65 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $42,887 and $24,387 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 6 colleges that offered a degree in astronomy and astrophysics. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality astronomy and astrophysics programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the astronomy and astrophysics program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. 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 “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for massachusetts bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid.

Top 6 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics in Massachusetts (With Aid)

#1

Harvard University

Cambridge, Massachusetts
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Harvard University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid list. Harvard University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school has a large population, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Harvard also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Massachusetts” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend Harvard is $15,386 for Massachusetts Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy 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%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Harvard Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

#2

Wellesley College

Wellesley, Massachusetts
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Wellesley College landed the #2 spot on the list. Wellesley, Massachusetts is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s astronomy degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.

Wellesley also took the #3 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Wellesley is $22,087 for Massachusetts Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Wellesley College

#3

Williams College

Williamstown, Massachusetts
#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Williams College. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid. Williams is located in Williamstown, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 6 bachelors’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

Williams did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Massachusetts” list. It costs about $19,480 for massachusetts bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid per year to attend Williams College.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at Williams

#4

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Amherst, Massachusetts

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Massachusetts Amherst. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid. Located in Amherst, Massachusetts, this large public school handed out 17 degrees to qualified bachelors’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

UMass Amherst did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Massachusetts” list. The yearly cost to attend UMass Amherst is $22,501 for massachusetts bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.8% 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 school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full University of Massachusetts Amherst Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

#5

Boston University

Boston, Massachusetts
#2 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Boston University landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 12 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

Boston U did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Massachusetts” list. The yearly cost to attend Boston U is $30,259 for Massachusetts Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. 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. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Boston U

#6

Smith College

Northampton, Massachusetts
#4 in overall quality

Smith College landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking. Smith College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Northampton, Massachusetts. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Smith, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. It costs about $28,305 for Massachusetts Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid per year to attend Smith.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Smith

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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).
  • 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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