Acceptance Rate
14%
Avg. SAT
1440
75th percentile
“You'll earn your wings at the Air Force Academy, blending razor-sharp engineering with ironclad military discipline on Colorado's rugged front range.”
USAF Academy, CO
Location
Town
Campus Setting
Picture yourself suiting up as a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy, founded in 1954 by President Eisenhower to train tomorrow's airmen amid the youngest of America's service academies—its first class didn't graduate until 1959. Nestled on 18,500 acres overlooking Colorado Springs, this isn't your typical college campus; it's a fortress of purpose where you drill, march, and study under the shadow of Pikes Peak. The academy draws cadets who crave structure and sacrifice—think the ultra-fit leader who dreams of piloting fighters or commanding squadrons, not the free-spirited artist seeking late-night coffee shops. You'll thrive here if military service ignites your fire, but tradeoffs loom large: a congressional nomination stands between you and admission (more selective than 98% of U.S. colleges at 16.2%), and every privilege comes tethered to a five-year active-duty commitment post-graduation. Colorado Springs offers hiking in Garden of the Gods and microbrews downtown, yet the fringe-town isolation and high-altitude chill (expect blizzards into May) test your resolve daily.
Photo Gallery
+25
+17
Admissions
Acceptance Rate
Test Policy
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Average GPA
Application Fee
Academics
Student-Faculty Ratio
Programs Offered
Full-Time Faculty
Women Faculty
Research Spending
Degree Levels Offered
In classrooms capped at 18 students thanks to the 7:1 faculty ratio, you'll tackle a core loaded with STEM— aeronautical engineering, physics, and computer science dominate, producing grads who design hypersonic aircraft or code cyber defenses. Professors, many active-duty officers, ditch dusty lectures for hands-on labs where you build gliders or simulate dogfights; research hits the skies via the FalconSAT program, launching student-built satellites into orbit. The intellectual vibe pulses with mission focus—expect group projects mimicking real Air Force ops—but if humanities beckon, options like behavioral science exist, though they pale next to the engineering juggernaut. Tradeoff: breadth yields to depth, so dreamers of philosophy PhDs might chafe against the practical grind.
Student Body
Total Enrollment
4,114 undergrad • 0 grad
Undergraduate
Graduate
International
White
63%
Black / African American
6%
Hispanic / Latino
12%
Asian
7%
Other / Multi-racial
12%
Campus Life
Campus Setting
USAF Academy, CO
Varsity Athletics
Your days unfold in lockstep rhythm: reveille at dawn, PT sessions scaling Falcon Stadium's bleachers, classes, then evening study in your squadron dorm. Divided into 40 squadrons like Air Force units, residential life forges unbreakable bonds—you'll eat, live, and train with 100 squadronmates, turning strangers into lifelong wingmen. Traditions electrify the calendar: the iconic Acceptance Parade where 1,200 freshmen hurl caps skyward, or football Saturdays when 18,000 fans roar for the Falcons. Social scene skews wholesome—dates at Arnold Hall ballroom, intramural sports over keggers—but the Honor Code ('We will not lie, steal, or cheat') enforces razor accountability, and hazing scandals have scarred the past. Positives abound in outdoor epics like parasailing over Rampart Reservoir, yet challenges bite: grueling physical standards weed out 20% before graduation, social dynamics favor the bold extrovert, and winter winds howl at 7,000 feet.
Housing
On-Campus Housing
Housing Capacity
Meal Plan Available
Athletics
Athletic Association
NCAA
Outcomes & Earnings
Retention Rate
97%
4 Years Graduation Rate
85%
6 Years Graduation Rate
96%
97% of first-time, full-time students complete their freshman year at United States Air Force Academy and return in the fall. 85% of first-time, full-time students graduate in 4 years, and 96% graduate within 6 years.
Graduation Rate
4-year grads
85%
4-6 years
11%
Non-grad
4%
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USAF Academy, CO 80840-5002