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2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid

11 Ranked Colleges
141 Degrees Awarded
$20,800 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. 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 in the Southwest Region 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 the Southwest region, there were 141 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $25,179 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 11 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. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools

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 in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest 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 in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics in the Southwest Region (With Aid)

#1

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Arizona landed the #1 spot on the list. University of Arizona is a public institution located in Tucson, Arizona. The school has a large population, and it awarded 57 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at University of Arizona, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $15,016 for southwest region astronomy students with aid per year to attend University of Arizona.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on 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 in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid. Located in Austin, Texas, this large public school awarded 38 diplomas to qualified ’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

UT Austin did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend The University of Texas at Austin is $18,023 for southwest region astronomy students with aid.

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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at The University of Texas at Austin

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Arizona State University - Tempe landed the #3 spot on the list. ASU - Tempe is a large public school situated in Tempe, Arizona. It awarded 7 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southwest region astronomy students with aid list, ASU - Tempe has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Arizona State University - Tempe is $11,706 for southwest region astronomy students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Arizona State University - Tempe

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New Mexico State University - Main Campus. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid list. New Mexico State University - Main Campus is a public institution located in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 3 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

NMSU Main Campus also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #9. It costs about $8,659 for Southwest Region Astronomy students with aid per year to attend NMSU Main Campus.

Full NMSU Main Campus Astronomy & Astrophysics Report

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Texas A&M University - College Station landed the #5 spot on the list. Texas A&M College Station is a large school located in College Station, Texas that handed out 4 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

Texas A&M College Station also made our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend Texas A&M University - College Station is $19,057 for Southwest Region Astronomy students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at Texas A&M University - College Station

#6

University of New Mexico - Main Campus

Albuquerque, New Mexico

University of New Mexico - Main Campus landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. UNM is a large school located in Albuquerque, New Mexico that handed out 5 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southwest region astronomy students with aid list, UNM has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $14,446 for Southwest Region Astronomy students with aid per year to attend University of New Mexico - Main Campus.

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

#7

Northern Arizona University

Flagstaff, Arizona

Northern Arizona University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #7. Northern Arizona University is a large public school situated in Flagstaff, Arizona. It awarded 7 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

NAU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Northern Arizona University is $12,915 for Southwest Region Astronomy students with aid.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at NAU

University of Oklahoma Norman Campus came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Norman, Oklahoma, this large public school handed out 9 degrees to qualified ’s astronomy students in 2019-2020.

University of Oklahoma did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $21,145 for Southwest Region Astronomy students with aid per year to attend University of Oklahoma Norman Campus.

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

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott is located in Prescott, Arizona and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2 ’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

Embry-Riddle Prescott also took the #4 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Embry-Riddle Prescott is $35,396 for southwest region astronomy students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 4.7% 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%.

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

#10

Baylor University

Waco, Texas

Baylor University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #10. Baylor University is located in Waco, Texas and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 3 ’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Baylor, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $36,039 for southwest region astronomy students with aid per year to attend Baylor University.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at Baylor University

#11

Texas Christian University

Fort Worth, Texas

Texas Christian University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Astronomy Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Getting Aid list. Texas Christian University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Fort Worth, Texas. It awarded 1 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southwest region astronomy students with aid list, TCU has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $36,811 for Southwest Region Astronomy students with aid per year to attend TCU.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at TCU

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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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