College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of Alabama in Huntsville

ALMedium public institution · Overall rank #249 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth ranks University of Alabama in Huntsville #249 among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

The fit is clearest for a student drawn to engineering or computing who wants a public university in Alabama where return is among the highest we track. University of Alabama in Huntsville is anchored by Engineering and Business, and most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes more of that to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market — than to what it cannot explain.

Affordability and access are both above average, but they rest on different figures. What families at the two ends of the income scale pay is below the published cost, and debt sits below the median at comparable schools.

Pell students complete below the overall rate, and access is above average. The admission rate is below the median for comparable schools.

The highest-earning programs are in engineering, and they pay more than the largest program, Nursing.

University of Alabama in Huntsville at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
68.6%
Six-year completion[2]
64.3%
Four-year earnings[3]
$81,045

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$18,210
Median student debt[4]
$20,705
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$20,297

University of Alabama in Huntsville rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

University of Alabama in Huntsville is a public university in Huntsville, Alabama, enrolling 6,591 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits in the upper third of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (83rd percentile).

The university admits 68.6% of applicants, a rate well below the 85.9% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Of students who start full time, 84.2% return for a second year, compared with a median of 73.7% for comparable institutions.

The six-year graduation rate is 64.3%, compared with a median of 49.1% for similar schools. An estimated 33.2% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the graduation rate describes a specific group: first-time, full-time students who start and finish here.

The four that make up the composite are not all at the same level. Return is the strongest pillar (90th percentile), while access is the weakest (58th percentile).

Mobility sits at the 71st percentile, and affordability at the 65th percentile. The return pillar sits at the 90th percentile, and the access pillar sits at the 58th percentile.

Return is the university's strongest Azimuth pillar, in the 90th percentile, and access is the weakest, in the 58th percentile. Azimuth places mobility in the 71st percentile and affordability in the 65th percentile.

The spread between the strongest and weakest pillars is wide, with return well above the other three.

24.6% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Those students complete at 46.7%, 17.6 percentage points below the rate for the entering cohort as a whole.

Azimuth ranks University of Alabama in Huntsville #611 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks the university #422 for mobility. Graduates earn about $12,408 more than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

University of Alabama in Huntsville rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#249

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 71
Access & reach
National percentile: 58
Affordability
National percentile: 65
Return on investment
National percentile: 90

Top-ranked majors

  1. Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering#38
  2. Management Information Systems and Services#40
  3. Industrial Engineering#49

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / University of Alabama in Huntsville briefing

University of Alabama in Huntsville cost & financial aid[6][7]

The published cost of attendance at University of Alabama in Huntsville is $27,392. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported in-state tuition of $10,700 and required fees of $1,758 for the 2026-27 academic year.

On-campus food and housing were listed at $12,428. Out-of-state students face a published tuition of $25,390.

The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $18,796. That is $4,728 above the $14,068 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks the university #501 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The published cost of attendance at University of Alabama in Huntsville is $27,392. Azimuth ranks the university #501 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $16,192, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $18,210, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $21,501. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $5,309.

Aid covers about 31% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, bringing the overall to $18,796. That is $4,728 above the $14,068 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $20,705 in federal student loans, $524 below the peer median of $21,229. 86.5% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $20,297 in Parent PLUS loans. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $235 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$18,210

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at University of Alabama in Huntsville

Among federal aid recipients, 86.5% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. Among borrowers who complete a degree, the median federal student debt is $20,705.

That median sits $524 below the $21,229 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 47% of graduates in a cohort of 882 borrowed from any source.

The average cumulative debt per borrower was $24,473. Of all graduates, 45% held federal loans averaging $20,587.

Of all graduates, 12% held private loans, averaging $38,919. Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $20,297.

University of Alabama in Huntsville graduates earn a median of $81,045 four years after completion. That is $23,744 above the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size), and it places the university at the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $12,408 more than the model expects for similar students, a result at the 87th percentile. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from a downside of $48,301 to an upside of $97,721, with the typical scenario at $81,045.

The median federal debt of $20,705 is $524 below the peer median. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $235 a month if repaid over ten years.

For the separate population of parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $20,297. Borrowers who finish carry a median of $20,705 in federal student loans.

If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $235 a month.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$20,705
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$20,297

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$235/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$258/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / University of Alabama in Huntsville briefing

University of Alabama in Huntsville career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $81,045. That figure sits in the 89th percentile nationally, and it is $23,744 above the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth places the return pillar at the 90th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $12,408 more than the model expects for similar students.

That result is in the 87th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,415.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $2,993. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $6,567.

The median for federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled is $81,045 four years after finishing a degree at University of Alabama in Huntsville. That exceeds the $57,301 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $23,744.

Azimuth places the result in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 1,291 completers. Graduates earn about $12,408 more than the model expects for similar students.

That places the gap in the 87th percentile. Scenarios based on the program mix range from $48,301 on the downside to $97,721 on the upside; the typical earnings scenario is $81,045.

Based on the program mix, an estimated 28.2% of graduates go on to graduate study.

The median earnings figure at University of Alabama in Huntsville is $81,045 four years after completion. That is $23,744 above the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That puts the university at the 89th percentile nationally. Azimuth ranks the university #146 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $12,408 more than the model expects for similar students. That places the gap at the 87th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,415. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $2,993.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $6,567. The program mix is heavy in engineering and computing, fields that tend to pay well early on.

Estimated from that mix, the downside earnings scenario is $48,301 and the upside is $97,721. An estimated 28.2% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Earnings scenarios at University of Alabama in Huntsville show a wide range, from $48,301 on the downside to $97,721 on the upside. The typical earnings scenario is $81,045.

These are estimates from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates. At the higher end, Computer Engineering graduates earn $105,920 four years after completion, from 71 degrees awarded.

Electrical Engineering follows at $100,296, and Mechanical Engineering at $95,341.

Borrowers who finish at University of Alabama in Huntsville carry a median of $20,705 in federal student loans. That is $524 below the $21,229 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $235 a month. Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $20,297 in Parent PLUS loans.

Graduates earn about $12,408 more than the model expects for similar students. The published cost of attendance is $27,392.

After grants and scholarships, aid recipients in the lowest income band average $16,192 and those in the highest band average $21,501, a spread of $5,309.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$9,415
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$2,993
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$12,408

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / University of Alabama in Huntsville briefing

University of Alabama in Huntsville acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

University of Alabama in Huntsville admits 68.6% of applicants, a rate that is more selective than the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size). In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 7,956 first-year applicants and 5,006 admitted applicants, with 1,220 enrolling.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
68.6%
25th percentile
1200
Median
1300
75th percentile
1370

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / University of Alabama in Huntsville briefing

What are the largest majors at University of Alabama in Huntsville?[12]

Engineering and computing fields dominate the earnings picture at University of Alabama in Huntsville. Computer Engineering graduates report the highest median four years after completion, at $105,920, from 71 degrees awarded.

Electrical Engineering follows at $100,296 with 59 degrees awarded. The largest programs show a wider spread.

Completers of Nursing, the biggest at 184 degrees awarded, earn a median of $75,430 four years after completion and Azimuth ranks it #277 nationally in its field. Computer and Information Sciences awards 153 degrees and its graduates earn $95,076, right at the national median for the field.

Business Administration and Management sits at the more moderate end of the range, with $62,872 across 117 degrees awarded. Median earnings four years after completion differ substantially across fields of study.

Engineering accounts for 28.5% of bachelor's degrees awarded, followed by Business at 19.9% and Health Professions at 10.9%. The university has 16 nationally ranked program and 18 programs with earnings data.

The largest program is Nursing, at 184 degrees awarded a year. The highest-earning program is Computer Engineering, where graduates earn $105,920 four years after completion from 71 degrees a year.

Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering are among the top five by size, with earnings of $95,341 and $87,339 respectively.

University of Alabama in Huntsville concentrates its bachelor's degrees in technical fields, with Engineering at 28.5% of degrees awarded, Business at 19.9% and Health Professions at 10.9%. The university has 18 programs with published four-year earnings data and 16 with an Azimuth national rank.

The largest programs are Nursing at 184, Computer and Information Sciences at 153 and Mechanical Engineering at 124 degrees awarded. Azimuth ranks it #2 in Alabama within its field.

Computer Engineering is the highest-earning program, with 71 degrees awarded and median earnings of $105,920 four years after completion. Electrical Engineering follows at $100,296, with 59 degrees awarded.

Across all fields, 49.7% of degrees awarded are in STEM. The strength is concentrated in engineering and computing.

Four-year earnings for fields that commonly precede graduate study may understate later trajectories.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 184 degrees awarded
$75,430
Computer and Information Sciences, General 153 degrees awarded
$95,076
Mechanical Engineering 124 degrees awarded
$95,341
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering 121 degrees awarded
$87,339
Business Administration, Management and Operations 117 degrees awarded
$62,872
Biology, General 104 degrees awarded
$45,992

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / University of Alabama in Huntsville briefing

What colleges are similar to University of Alabama in Huntsville?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Admissions peerLipscomb University67.7% admitted
Comparison with University of Alabama in Huntsville
MeasureUniversity of Alabama in HuntsvilleLipscomb University
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,045$63,007-$18,038 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville
Average annual net price$18,796$24,739+$5,943 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville · higher cost
Admission rate68.6%67.7%
Higher-admission alternativeMontana Technological University91.1% admitted
Comparison with University of Alabama in Huntsville
MeasureUniversity of Alabama in HuntsvilleMontana Technological University
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,045$79,369-$1,676 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville
Average annual net price$18,796$16,481-$2,315 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville · lower cost
Admission rate68.6%91.1%
Nearby alternativeUniversity of Alabama at BirminghamNearby option · AL
Comparison with University of Alabama in Huntsville
MeasureUniversity of Alabama in HuntsvilleUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,045$64,969-$16,076 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville
Average annual net price$18,796$18,749-$47 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville · lower cost
Admission rate68.6%88.2%
Explore University of Alabama at Birmingham →
Lower-cost alternativeUniversity of Florida$4,815 average net price
Comparison with University of Alabama in Huntsville
MeasureUniversity of Alabama in HuntsvilleUniversity of Florida
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,045$77,321-$3,724 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville
Average annual net price$18,796$4,815-$13,981 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville · lower cost
Admission rate68.6%61.3%
Explore University of Florida →
Similar profileWilliam & MaryMatched across several measures
Comparison with University of Alabama in Huntsville
MeasureUniversity of Alabama in HuntsvilleWilliam & Mary
Peer earnings · 4 years$81,045$80,445-$600 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville
Average annual net price$18,796$19,096+$300 vs University of Alabama in Huntsville · higher cost
Admission rate68.6%34.1%
Explore William & Mary →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings