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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy in the Middle Atlantic Region

7 Ranked Colleges
71 Degrees Awarded
$25,400 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor's in the Middle Atlantic Region

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.

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

Across the Middle Atlantic region, there were 113 astronomy graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 71 astronomy graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,278 and $24,587 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking looked at 7 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s 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. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Astronomy Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region” 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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region.

Top 7 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astronomy in the Middle Atlantic Region

#1

SUNY New Paltz

New Paltz, New York
#7 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend SUNY New Paltz. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region. SUNY New Paltz is located in New Paltz, New York and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 bachelors’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.

SUNY New Paltz also took the #7 spot in our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SUNY New Paltz is $17,171 for Middle Atlantic Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomical Sciences students.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, 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 3.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Astronomy at SUNY New Paltz

#2

Stony Brook University

Stony Brook, New York
#4 in overall quality

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Stony Brook University landed the #2 spot on the list. Stony Brook University is located in Stony Brook, New York and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 14 bachelors’s astronomical sciences degrees to qualified students.

SUNY Stony Brook also took the #4 spot in our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking. It costs about $15,160 for middle atlantic region bachelor’s degree astronomical sciences students per year to attend Stony Brook University.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, 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 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full SUNY Stony Brook Astronomy Report

#3

University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, Maryland
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Maryland - College Park landed the #3 spot on the list. UMCP is a public institution located in College Park, Maryland. The school has a large population, and it awarded 28 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UMCP, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UMCP is $19,045 for Middle Atlantic Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomical Sciences students.

The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Astronomy at University of Maryland - College Park

#6 in overall quality

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus landed the #4 spot on the list. University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus is a large school located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that handed out 1 bachelors’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Pitt also took the #6 spot in our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Pitt is $27,938 for Middle Atlantic Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomical Sciences students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, 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 93%.

Read more about Astronomy at Pitt

#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Columbia University in the City of New York. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in New York, New York, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 3 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s astronomical sciences students in 2019-2020.

Columbia also made our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend Columbia University in the City of New York is $23,306 for Middle Atlantic Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomical Sciences students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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.

Read full report on Astronomy at Columbia University in the City of New York

#6

Union College New York

Schenectady, New York
#5 in overall quality

Union College New York came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Union College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Schenectady, New York. The school has a small population, and it awarded 1 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Union College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list. It costs about $34,779 for Middle Atlantic Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomical Sciences students per year to attend Union College.

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%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read more about Astronomy at Union College New York

#7

Cornell University

Ithaca, New York
#2 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, Cornell University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Astronomical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Middle Atlantic Region list. This large school is located in Ithaca, New York, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s astronomical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Cornell not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Astronomy Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list. It costs about $40,126 for Middle Atlantic Region Bachelor’s Degree Astronomical Sciences students per year to attend Cornell.

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 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 impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read more about Astronomy at Cornell

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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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