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2023 Best Value Colleges for Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering (Income $48-$75k) in California

11 Ranked Colleges
1,275 Degrees Awarded
Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. 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 Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering is the 94th most popular major in the country with 8,001 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, aerospace and aeronautical engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $70,535 and had an average of $24,126 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 1,275 aerospace and aeronautical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,108 and $21,474 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in aerospace and aeronautical engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent aerospace and aeronautical engineering programs, but they also 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 aerospace and aeronautical engineering program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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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 Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k” 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. 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 Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering (Income $48-$75k) in California

1
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, California

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Stanford University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Stanford, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 93 diplomas to qualified ’s aerospace engineering students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Stanford, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Stanford University is $7,081 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at Stanford University

2

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s aerospace engineering degrees to 87 students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCLA, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UCLA is $12,644 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.6% 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 Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at UCLA

3

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - San Diego. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k. La Jolla, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s aerospace engineering degrees to 143 students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california aerospace engineering students whose families make $48-$75k list, UCSD has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - San Diego is $14,310 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default 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 about Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at University of California - San Diego

4
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. USC is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 167 ’s aerospace engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

USC also made our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend University of Southern California is $22,826 for california aerospace engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, 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 91%.

Full USC Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Report

5

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Davis. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k. University of California - Davis is a large school located in Davis, California that handed out 86 ’s aerospace engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

UC Davis also took the #6 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $14,193 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UC Davis.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.5% 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%.

Read more about Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at UC Davis

6

University of California - Irvine came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Irvine, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s aerospace engineering degrees to 85 students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Irvine, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Irvine is $13,275 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full UC Irvine Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Report

7

California State University - Long Beach came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Located in Long Beach, California, this large public school handed out 73 degrees to qualified ’s aerospace engineering students in 2020-2021.

CSULB also took the #11 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CSULB is $11,189 for california aerospace engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

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 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full CSULB Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Report

8
SDSU crest
San Diego State University
San Diego, California

San Diego State University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #8. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s aerospace engineering degrees to 90 students in 2020-2021.

SDSU also took the #8 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for SDSU is $14,698 for california aerospace engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% 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 Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at San Diego State University

9

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #9. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a large public school situated in San Luis Obispo, California. It awarded 110 ’s aerospace engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is $17,340 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, 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 more about Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

10

California State Polytechnic University - Pomona came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is located in Pomona, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 101 ’s aerospace engineering degrees to qualified students.

Cal Poly Pomona not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Cal Poly Pomona is $15,958 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at Cal Poly Pomona

11
San Jose State crest
San Jose State University
San Jose, California

San Jose State University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Aerospace Engineering Schools in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. This large school is located in San Jose, California, and it awarded 71 ’s aerospace engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

San Jose State also took the #9 spot in our “Best Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend San Jose State University is $17,338 for California Aerospace Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering at San Jose State University

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