Admit rate has ranged 61%–72% over the last 5 years — notably volatile. Source: IPEDS via Urban Institute.
Acceptance & SAT from Common Data Set / IPEDS; net price, earnings & graduation from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~1–2 years — verify with the school.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach is the undisputed heavyweight of aerospace education—a place where propeller heads and future astronauts find their tribe. With its runway-adjacent campus and laser focus on aviation, engineering, and applied sciences, ERAU delivers graduates straight into the cockpits and engineering labs of major aerospace firms. The vibe is technical, tight-knit, and unapologetically nerdy about all things that fly.
Admission requirements
Test-optional — scores considered if submitted
Required
High school transcript
College-prep program
TOEFL (non-native English)
Considered (not required)
Grade point average
Class rank
Letters of recommendation
Test scores (SAT/ACT)
Demonstrated competencies
Source: IPEDS Admissions survey (2022) via Urban Institute. Covers formal factors only — it does not reflect essays, extracurriculars, or other holistic criteria.
More details
Undergrad enrollment
7,860
In-state tuition
$44,249
Out-of-state tuition
$44,249
Contact
386-226-6100 | DaytonaBeach@erau.edu
Acceptance Rate
61-66%
Student Organizations
400+
6-Year Graduation Rate
66%
Median 10-Year Earnings
$84,131
Outcomes & value
Outcomes & value
Median earnings (10 yr)
$84,131
Value (earnings ÷ net price)
2.0×
Median debt at graduation
$23,666
Graduation rate
67%
First-year retention
88%
Reducing loan balance (3 yr)
64%
Pell (lower-income) share
67%
First-generation share
36%
Endowment / student
$28,326
Top-earning majors
Median earnings by field of study (highest credential), ~2 years after completion.
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering$65,080
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians$64,087
Computer Engineering$62,012
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering$61,020
Business Administration, Management and Operations$59,314
Mechanical Engineering
Campus & location
Campus safety
On-campus violent crimes (2024)
1
Per 1,000 students
0.13
On-campus criminal offenses classed as violent (murder/non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) for the most recent reported year. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education Campus Safety and Security (Clery Act). Counts reflect what’s reported to the school, and urban campuses often report more partly due to non-student incidents nearby — read alongside campus size and setting, not as a standalone safety verdict.
Climate
Pleasant days / yr
137
Summer high
88°F
Winter low
55°F
Annual rain
56.2"
Natural-hazard risk
Relatively High
Pleasant days counts days per year with a mean temperature of 55–75°F, a high at or below 90°F, a low at or above 45°F, and little precipitation — a transparent comfort measure, not a weighting we invented. Computed from Open-Meteo ERA5 daily history (2019–2023). Natural-hazard risk is the county’s composite rating from the FEMA National Risk Index.
Quick answers
What is the acceptance rate at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach?
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach's acceptance rate is approximately 65% (Daytona Beach, FL), based on the most recent figures we compiled from public and primary sources.
What SAT score do you need for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach?
Admitted students at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach typically score 1160–1360 on the SAT (the middle-50% range). Scores outside this band are still admitted, especially with strong applications.
How much does Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach cost?
At Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach, the average net price (after aid) is about $41,272 per year. Actual cost varies with financial aid and residency.
How many undergraduates attend Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach?
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach enrolls approximately 7,860 undergraduate students.
Where is Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach located?
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach is located in Daytona Beach, FL.
Admissions
Getting into Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach campus is more accessible than its specialized reputation might suggest, with Acceptance rateThe share of applicants a college admits in a given year. A 10% acceptance rate means it admits about 1 in 10 applicants. hovering between 61-66% across recent years. The university adopts a Test-optionalA policy where you choose whether to submit SAT or ACT scores. If you don't, the rest of your application carries more weight. policy—SAT/ACT scores aren't required but are considered if submitted, with admitted students typically scoring in the middle 50% range. Contact points for admissions are distinctly old-school: a dedicated phone line (386-226-6100) and email (DaytonaBeach@erau.edu) for queries. While the Common Data Set (CDS)A standardized report most colleges publish each year with admissions, test-score, and financial-aid figures, making schools easier to compare. confirms a high school diploma or GED is mandatory, the admissions process seems geared toward identifying passion for aerospace rather than just academic superstars.
Earnings = median of students working ~10 years after entry; debt = median of graduates. Value divides 10-yr earnings by one year’s net price — read it as earnings per dollar of annual cost, not a full lifetime ROI; it favors lower-cost schools. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~2 years and reflect all students, not your intended major.
$55,964
Air Transportation$48,833
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology$41,937
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (field-of-study earnings). Figures cover graduates who received federal aid and lag ~2 years; not all programs report data.
ERAU-Daytona Beach operates like a vocational school for the sky—90+ degree programs with an obsessive focus on aviation, aerospace engineering, and related tech fields. The curriculum reads like an aerospace industry catalog: Aerospace Physiology, Air Traffic Management, Unmanned Systems, and Spaceflight Operations sit alongside traditional engineering disciplines. Even the College of Arts & Sciences leans technical, offering degrees in Human Factors Psychology and Computational Mathematics rather than broad liberal arts. Reddit threads confirm the culture is intensely focused: 'It's not a scam... It's very aerospace and aviation focused,' as one commenter bluntly put it. Niche rankings back this up, highlighting ERAU's national reputation in these niche domains.
Campus life orbits around two gravitational centers: flight labs and 400+ student organizations tailored to aerospace geeks. The Activities Fair is a major event, showcasing clubs like the Spaceflight Operations Club and Women in Aviation alongside more traditional options. Social media captures quirky traditions like the 'Glow Cade' orientation event—a neon-lit parade that bonds incoming students. The Daytona Beach location provides beach access, but the real action happens on campus: intramural sports, professional development groups, and a tight-knit community where, as one Instagram post notes, 'Embracing the student body' is central. Dorms and dining facilities are functional rather than luxurious, reinforcing the no-nonsense, career-prep atmosphere.
ERAU-Daytona Beach delivers on its career-prep promise with strong outcomes: an 88% first-year retention rate and 66% six-year graduation rate (well above average for specialized tech schools). The payoff comes at graduation—alumni median earnings hit $84,131 within a decade, with Business Insider ranking ERAU grads among Florida's highest earners. Early-career salaries average $51,000, but the real value emerges in industry connections: graduates flood into Boeing, SpaceX, and major airlines, often via robust internship pipelines. The data suggests a clear tradeoff—students endure a no-frills campus experience to gain direct pathways into lucrative aerospace careers.
Attending ERAU-Daytona Beach requires navigating sticker shock—the Net priceWhat a family actually pays after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the sticker price — usually far less than the published cost. after aid averages $39,886-$41,550 annually. The university offers a Net Price Calculator to estimate individualized costs, with average aid packages around $22,590. Financial aid leans heavily on loans and merit scholarships rather than need-based grants, reflecting its private institution status. While not cheap, the investment appears justified by earnings potential: the school's ROI calculator essentially bets that aerospace industry salaries will offset the debt burden. Prospective students should run the numbers carefully—this is a premium-priced education with premium career outcomes, but only for those committed to the industry.
ERAU-Daytona Beach occupies a unique niche—it's essentially a trade school for the aerospace elite, combining the rigor of an engineering program with the focused intensity of a flight academy. Unlike broader tech schools, every resource here is optimized for aviation and space: from flight simulators to wind tunnels to industry partnerships with NASA contractors. The culture is its own microclimate—part military precision (many ROTC cadets), part hacker-space creativity (drone design teams), and all-in on aerospace obsession. For students who eat, sleep, and breathe flight, there's simply no substitute.
