2026 Best Astronomy Schools in New York
Astronomy is a field worth a close look when choosing where to study. While the number of schools offering the program varies, there are still top-quality ones to be found.
For its 2026 ranking, College Factual looked at 8 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for astronomy students pursuing a degree.
What’s on this page:
DEBUG: Raw major_slug = ""
DEBUG: Initial offers_url = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json", major_slug = ""
DEBUG: After cleaning major_slug = ""
DEBUG: Before URL cleaning = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json"
DEBUG: After TrimSuffix = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json"
DEBUG: After HTTPS placeholder = "HTTPS_TEMP_PLACEHOLDERwww.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json"
DEBUG: After slash cleaning = "HTTPS_TEMP_PLACEHOLDERwww.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json"
DEBUG: After URL cleaning = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json"
DEBUG: offers_url = https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/offers.json
DEBUG: major_slug = ""
DEBUG: offers_url is valid, proceeding to fetch data
DEBUG: No offers_data.offers found, showing generic ESYOH widget
Best Schools for Astronomy in New York
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest overall astronomy education in New York.
Top Schools in Astronomy
No school ranked higher than Cornell University this year for astronomy. Cornell University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Ithaca. Cornell University graduates 95% of students within six years. Cornell University awarded about 22 astronomy degrees in the most recent data year. Students who receive their astronomy degree from Cornell University earn around $75,976 in the first couple years of their career. Typical student debt for the program is $15,005.
Read more about the astronomy program at Cornell University
Columbia University In The City Of New York came in at #2 on our 2026 list of the best astronomy schools. Located in the city of New York, Columbia University In The City Of New York is a very large private not-for-profit university. The six-year graduation rate is 96%. Columbia University In The City Of New York awarded about 14 astronomy degrees in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, astronomy degree recipients from Columbia University In The City Of New York generally make around $86,770. Students borrow a median of $23,258 to complete this degree.
Get the full astronomy details for Columbia University In The City Of New York
Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs graduation rate, post-graduation earnings, cost, and program quality, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Top Ranked · 8 schools evaluated.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
ADBLOCK #116
