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

7 Ranked Colleges
86 Degrees Awarded
$21,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor's in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Astronomy & Astrophysics is the 222nd most popular major in the country with 1,268 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. 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 the Southwest region, there were 141 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $25,179 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 86 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,896 and $23,899 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 7 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in astronomy and astrophysics. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great astronomy and astrophysics programs and cost less that 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.

More Ways to Rank Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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 the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid

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

Top 7 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics in the Southwest Region (With Aid)

#1

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Arizona. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid. Located in Tucson, Arizona, this large public school awarded 26 degrees to qualified bachelors’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

University of Arizona did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $15,016 for southwest region bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid per year to attend University of Arizona.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at University of Arizona

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 #2 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid. UT Austin is a large public school situated in Austin, Texas. It awarded 33 bachelors’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

UT Austin also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend The University of Texas at Austin is $18,023 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The low student loan default rate of 2.7% 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 The University of Texas at Austin Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

#3

University of New Mexico - Main Campus

Albuquerque, New Mexico
#7 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of New Mexico - Main Campus. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid. Located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, this large public school awarded 5 degrees to qualified bachelors’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

UNM also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $14,446 for southwest region bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid per year to attend UNM.

Full University of New Mexico - Main Campus Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

#4

Northern Arizona University

Flagstaff, Arizona
#6 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Arizona University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid list. Flagstaff, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s astronomy degrees to 5 students in 2019-2020.

NAU also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #6. It costs about $12,915 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid per year to attend NAU.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at Northern Arizona University

#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Oklahoma Norman Campus. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid list. University of Oklahoma is a large public school situated in Norman, Oklahoma. It awarded 9 bachelors’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southwest region bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid list, University of Oklahoma has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Oklahoma is $21,145 for southwest region bachelor’s degree astronomy students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, 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 87%.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at University of Oklahoma

#3 in overall quality

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #6. Prescott, Arizona 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.

Embry-Riddle Prescott also took the #3 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott is $35,396 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid.

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 full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott

#7

Baylor University

Waco, Texas
#4 in overall quality

Baylor University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Astronomy Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in Waco, Texas, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Baylor, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Baylor is $36,039 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomy students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Baylor Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

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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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