College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2024 Best Air Transportation Schools

50 Colleges in the United States
9,984 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
$46,821 Avg Early-Career Salary
Air Transportation is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #91 most popular degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 50 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for air transportation students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 9,984 degrees in air transportation during the 2020-2021 academic year.

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

Choosing a Great Air Transportation School

Best Air Transportation Schools The air transport program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Air Transportation rankings. For our Best Overall Air Transportation School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

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.

Air Transportation Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Air Transport
Bachelor's Degrees in Air Transport
Master's Degrees in Air Transport
Doctor's Degrees in Air Transport

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Air Transportation Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

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. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Air Transportation in the United States

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the air transport degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Schools in Air Transport

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,863 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
7.8% Growth in Graduates

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Worldwide is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in air transportation. Located in the city of Daytona Beach, Embry-Riddle Worldwide is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

There were approximately 1863.0000000000002 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at Embry-Riddle Worldwide in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the air transportation program at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Worldwide earn $14,385 above the standard college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Worldwide

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
182 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
13.7% Growth in Graduates

It's difficult to beat Purdue University - Main Campus if you want to pursue a degree in air transportation. Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #40 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Purdue is a great university overall.

There were approximately 182 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at Purdue in the most recent data year. Those air transportation students who get their degree from Purdue University - Main Campus receive $14,874 more than the standard air transport grad.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Purdue University - Main Campus

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
648 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
20.4% Growth in Graduates

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in air transportation. Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach is a large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Daytona Beach. A Best Colleges rank of #160 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach is a great university overall.

There were roughly 648 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach in the most recent data year. Those air transportation students who get their degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach receive $14,385 more than the standard air transport student.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
295 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
22.7% Growth in Graduates

Every student who is interested in air transportation needs to look into University of North Dakota. UND is a large public university located in the small city of Grand Forks. A Best Colleges rank of #218 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UND is a great university overall.

There were roughly 295 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at UND in the most recent data year. Air Transportation degree recipients from University of North Dakota earn a boost of about $17,246 above the average earnings of air transportation graduates.

More information about a degree in air transportation from University of North Dakota

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
192 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
23.4% Growth in Graduates

Embry-Riddle Prescott is a small private not-for-profit university located in the rural area of Prescott. A Best Colleges rank of #294 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Embry-Riddle Prescott is a great university overall.

There were about 192 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at Embry-Riddle Prescott in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the air transportation major at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott get $19,624 more than the standard graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
330 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
34.5% Growth in Graduates

UVU is a very large public university located in the city of Orem. A Best Colleges rank of #279 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UVU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 330 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at UVU in the most recent year we have data available. Those air transportation students who get their degree from Utah Valley University earn $13,053 more than the standard air transport grad.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Utah Valley University

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
149 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
14.1% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Melbourne, Florida Tech is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #330 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Florida Tech is a great school overall.

There were about 149 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at Florida Tech in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the air transportation degree program at Florida Institute of Technology earn $2,034 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Florida Institute of Technology

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
49 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
36.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small city of Manhattan, K -State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #225 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means K -State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 49 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at K -State in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the air transportation program at Kansas State University get $4,029 more than the standard graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Kansas State University

9
Lewis crest
Lewis University
Romeoville, IL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
128 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
0.8% Growth in Graduates

Lewis is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Romeoville. This university ranks 26th out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 128 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at Lewis in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the air transport program make about $47,241 for their early career.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Lewis University

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
171 Air Transport Degrees Awarded
$44,837 Median Starting Salary

SIUC is a large public university located in the city of Carbondale. This university ranks 23rd out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 171 air transportation students who graduated with this degree at SIUC in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, air transport degree recipients generally earn about $44,837 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in air transportation from Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Air Transportation by Region

View the Best Air Transportation Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

Air Transportation is one of 3 different types of Transportation & Materials Moving programs to choose from.

Air Transport Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Aeronautics/Aviation/Aerospace Science & Technology 5,034
Airline/Commercial/Professional Pilot & Flight Crew 2,223
Aviation/Airway Management & Operations 1,895
Air Traffic Controller 338
Other Air Transportation 317
Remote Aircraft Pilot 95
Airline Flight Attendant 44
Flight Instructor 38

View All Air Transport Concentrations >

Majors Similar to Air Transport

Related Major Annual Graduates
Ground Transportation 17,893
Marine Transportation 1,203
Other Transportation & Materials Moving 4

View All Air Transport Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options