Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott

Private · Moderately Selective · AZ

Photo: Connor McShane (CC BY-SA 4.0)

School data & stats

TypePrivate

LocationAZ · West

SettingUrban

Undergrads3,218

Student:faculty17:1

Outcomes

4-yr grad rate46.1%

6-yr grad rate67.8%

Drop-out rate17.8%

Study abroad—

Cost

In-state tuition$44k

Out-of-state tuition$44k

Application fee—

Community

Racial diversity46%

Gender diversity27.7%

International8.1%

Identity—

Overview

Embry-Riddle's Prescott campus is one of two US campuses (the other in Daytona Beach) of the world's most specialized aviation and aerospace university. Set in the high-desert mountains of central Arizona, it takes advantage of consistently clear flying weather for flight training nearly year-round.

Academics

Pilot training and aerospace engineering are the campus's core identity, backed by its own fleet and airport operations, with aerospace engineering and space physics programs rigorous enough to draw students who could go elsewhere for a general engineering degree. Its global security and intelligence studies program has built an unusual reputation for a school this size, feeding into aviation-adjacent government and defense careers alongside the flight and engineering tracks.

Campus & student life

The Prescott campus is noticeably smaller and more close-knit than the Daytona Beach campus, with a residential, outdoorsy feel shaped by its mountain-town setting. Much of student identity runs through aviation itself — students in flight programs log real hours from early in their time there, and campus culture reflects that shared, career-specific focus more than a typical undergraduate social scene.

Getting in

Admission is more about fit and seriousness of purpose than raw selectivity — flight programs in particular expect a demonstrated commitment to aviation as a career, and interviews or program-specific requirements can factor in for flight and security-studies tracks.

After graduation

Graduates move directly into airline pilot pipelines, aerospace and defense engineering firms, and federal agencies, aided by a tight-knit alumni network concentrated in aviation and aerospace industries.

Worth knowing

Choosing between Prescott and Embry-Riddle's larger Daytona Beach campus is a real decision — Prescott's smaller scale and desert-mountain setting make for a noticeably different four years than the Florida campus, even though both confer the same Embry-Riddle degree.

prescott.erau.edu ↗

Admissions

Acceptance rate76.6%

Enrolled mid-50%SAT 1140–1370 · ACT 24–29

Test policyoptional

Rec letters0

Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)

AdmissionRolling

Applying