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2024 Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Great Lakes Region

11 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
249 Astronomy Degrees Awarded
$19,258 Avg Early-Career Salary
Astronomy & Astrophysics is about average in terms of popularity for degree programs. That is, it ranks #219 out of the 395 majors across the country that we analyze each year. As such, the degree program isn't offered at every college in the United States, but there are schools that do have a program in the field that are top-notch when it comes to quality.

College Factual looked at 11 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 249 degrees in astronomy & astrophysics during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Astronomy & Astrophysics School

Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Great Lakes Region The astronomy program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Astronomy & Astrophysics rankings. We derive our Best Overall Astronomy & Astrophysics School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Astronomy & Astrophysics Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Astronomy
Master's Degrees in Astronomy
Doctor's Degrees in Astronomy

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in the Great Lakes Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for Astronomy & Astrophysics in the Great Lakes Region

The schools below may not offer all types of astronomy degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in Astronomy

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In IL
14.3% Growth in Graduates

Any student who is interested in astronomy & astrophysics has to look into Northwestern University. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.

There were approximately 14 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from Northwestern University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IL
71.4% Growth in Graduates

University of Chicago is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in astronomy & astrophysics. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UChicago is a great university overall.

There were approximately 28 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from University of Chicago

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IL

It's hard to beat University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign if you wish to pursue a degree in astronomy & astrophysics. UIUC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Champaign. A Best Colleges rank of #34 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.

There were about 27 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In WI

Every student pursuing a degree in astronomy & astrophysics has to look into University of Wisconsin - Madison. UW - Madison is a very large public university located in the city of Madison. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.

There were approximately 30 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from University of Wisconsin - Madison

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In OH
41 Astronomy Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 96 colleges for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were roughly 41 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from Ohio State University - Main Campus

6
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In MI
13.6% Growth in Graduates

Michigan State is a fairly large public university located in the small city of East Lansing. This university ranks 2nd out of 57 schools for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were approximately 22 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from Michigan State University

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IN
7.1% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #55 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means IU Bloomington is a great university overall.

There were roughly 14 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at IU Bloomington in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from Indiana University - Bloomington

8

Located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.

There were roughly 25 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the astronomy program state that they receive average early career income of $19,258.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

9
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In IL

Illinois Tech is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago. This school ranks 9th out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were about 4 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at Illinois Tech in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from Illinois Institute of Technology

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In OH
10.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large city of Cincinnati, UC is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 5th out of 96 colleges for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were approximately 10 astronomy & astrophysics students who graduated with this degree at UC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in astronomy & astrophysics from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus

Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Colleges by State

Explore the best astronomy & astrophysics colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 322 57
Ohio 314 64
Illinois 304 74
Indiana 294 23
Wisconsin 273 30

View All Rankings >

Astronomy & Astrophysics is one of 8 different types of Physical Sciences programs to choose from.

Astronomy Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Astronomy 173
Astrophysics 67
Other Astronomy & Astrophysics 8
Planetary Astronomy & Science 1

View All Astronomy Concentrations >

Majors Similar to Astronomy

Related Major Annual Graduates
Chemistry 3,288
Physics 1,760
Geological & Earth Sciences 818
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology 174
General Physical Sciences 80
Materials Sciences 37
Other Physical Science 15

View All Astronomy Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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