---
title: Is an Air Transportation degree worth the debt?
cip: 4901
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard — Field of Study (2026-06-10 release)
sourceId: src:doe:college-scorecard:field-of-study:2026-06-10
---

# Is an Air Transportation degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **53** colleges (53 of 53 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $44,837 ($44,984 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $22,067 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.47× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $40,383–$48,402 — the program you choose moves the number this much.


**How to read this:** these are MEDIANS across college programs, measured **1–2 years after completion** (early career, graduates only) — NOT lifetime earnings, and NOT comparable to a college's 10-years-after-entry figure. They cover **federally-aided completers at programs large enough to report**; small programs are suppressed. A field median is not a prediction of your outcome, not causal (who enters a field differs by field), and **not a "best majors" ranking** — earnings are one dimension of worth. Verify by field at the official College Scorecard (https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/).

## By degree level

| Level | Pay (1yr) | Federal debt | Debt/pay | Colleges | Programs reporting |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Associate's | $37,988 | $17,584 | 0.37× | 6 | 6/6 |
| Bachelor's | $44,837 | $22,067 | 0.47× | 53 | 53/53 |
| Master's | $78,896 | $37,674 | 0.48× | 6 | 6/6 |

## Where an Bachelor's in this field reports the highest early-career pay

Reflects who enrolls and where, not causal program quality.

| College | Pay (1yr) | Federal debt |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus (NM) | $78,108 | $17,000 |
| Utah Valley University (UT) | $59,874 | $21,504 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott (AZ) | $53,995 | $23,250 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach (FL) | $53,995 | $23,250 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide (FL) | $53,995 | $23,250 |
| Kansas State University (KS) | $50,850 | $20,500 |
| Louisiana Tech University (LA) | $50,634 | $20,385 |
| Liberty University (VA) | $49,846 | $22,420 |
| Florida Institute of Technology (FL) | $48,855 | $27,000 |
| Florida Institute of Technology-Online | $48,855 | $27,000 |
| Minnesota State University-Mankato (MN) | $48,586 | $19,500 |
| University of North Texas (TX) | $48,490 | $23,573 |
| Ohio University-Eastern Campus (OH) | $48,402 | $22,067 |
| Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus (OH) | $48,402 | $22,067 |
| Ohio University-Southern Campus (OH) | $48,402 | $22,067 |

RECORDED College Scorecard figures + one DERIVED ratio (debt-to-earnings). Informs and compares; not advice on what to major in. Each college's full record: `/education/<slug>`.

Structured data: `/education/fields/air-transportation.jsonld` · `/education/fields/air-transportation.json`