U.S. News & World Report Ranks Embry-Riddle Prescott Best in the West, No. 1 in Aerospace Engineering Without a Ph.D. Option

U.S. News & World Report Ranks Embry-Riddle Prescott Best in the West, No. 1 in Aerospace Engineering Without a Ph.D. Option
In the 2026 U.S. News & World Report rankings, Embry Riddle’s Prescott Campus earned the No. 1 national ranking in the Best Undergraduate Aerospace Engineering Programs category for schools without a Ph.D. option. Here, students work on technology for the NASA Human Lander Challenge. (Photo: Embry-Riddle/Connor McShane)

Seth Robbins /

Sep 24, 2025, 8:00 AM

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s undergraduate Aerospace Engineering program at the Prescott, Arizona, campus ranked No. 1 in the nation among programs without a doctoral option, according to the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings.

Among regional colleges in the West, the campus was awarded three top-5 honors by U.S. News & World Report in its 2026 Best Colleges review of residential campuses. This included the No. 1 Overall Rank for the fourth consecutive year and No. 1 in the Best for Veterans category, a recognition the campus has earned for five years in a row.

“We are honored that U.S. News & World Report has once again ranked Embry-Riddle among the very best,” said Dr. Ken Witcher, chancellor of the Prescott Campus. “These results reflect our dedication to students, and our ongoing commitment to delivering an exceptional education that prepares graduates to lead in aviation, aerospace and space.”

The Prescott Campus, which serves some 3,000 undergraduates, also ranked No. 2 among the Best Value Schools in the same region, jumping two spots from 2025. The classification examines academic quality and cost after accounting for total expenses and financial aid.

Additionally, the campus ranked No. 9 in the Top Performers on Social Mobility category. This recognizes schools that graduate large proportions of disadvantaged students who receive Pell Grants, which are awarded mainly to students from households earning under $50,000 per year.

For the second consecutive year, the Prescott Campus earned the No.1 national ranking among non-doctoral granting programs in the Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical category.

“Being recognized as the nation’s number one program in aerospace, aeronautical and astronautical engineering is a tremendous point of pride,” said Dr. Kathy Wood, Interim Dean of Embry-Riddle’s Prescott College of Engineering. “Here, students gain hands-on, industry-ready experience from day one — developing the mindset to shape the future of flight and space exploration.”