Aviation degree · Arkadelphia, AR · Checked July 22, 2026
What an aviation degree at Henderson State University costs
A 4-year bachelor's (BS) program. Tuition, room & board, and flight fees, each from the school's own published pages, summed into an all-in estimate. Flight fees are billed separately and on top of tuition. This is a planning estimate, not the school's quote.
PilotBound all-in estimate
$160K
In-state, all-in
$172K
Out-of-state, all-in
Tuition + room & board (4years) + whole-program flight fees. Sourced figures summed, not the school's quoted package. Tuition changes yearly.
The numbers, with sources
- Tuition (in-state)
- $33,000
- Tuition (out-of-state)
- $45,240
- Room & board(estimated)
- $50,400
- Flight training (whole program)
- $76,370
- All-in (in-state)
- $159,770
Arkansas resident, $275/credit hour at 30 hours a year. Henderson publishes the per-hour rate rather than an annual figure, and does not show mandatory fees on the same page.
Non-resident, $377/credit hour at 30 hours a year. The resident-to-non-resident gap here is among the narrowest of any public school in this directory.
Henderson does not publish a room and board figure on its tuition page; it refers to a separate expenses sheet that the page does not show.
Based on FAA-minimum hours; real cost typically runs higher.
Henderson's own fee sheet, effective 1 July 2026, and its own stated total. Eight degree labs run from Intro to Aeronautics through the Multi-Engine Pilot Lab and come to $58,978.90 across 219.6 flight hours; the CFI, CFII and optional MEI labs add $17,391.10; the sheet's own grand total of $76,370.00 over 270.2 flight hours is what those two sum to, TO THE CENT. Every lab is itemised into flight hours, flight cost, ground hours and ground cost. IT IS FAA-MINIMUM PRICING and Henderson says so twice: the times are 'based upon FAA minimum required times per lab', and the totals 'do not reflect the additional hours of training needed for most students'. Hours beyond the minimum are billed at the published hourly rates: Maule MXT-7 $165, Piper PA-28R-201 complex glass $190, Tecnam P2006T twin $540, Citabria $135, Redbird FMX $105.50, instructor $75. A fuel surcharge may be added.
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Compare the pathsCommon questions about Henderson State University
- How much does an aviation degree at Henderson State University cost?
- Summing Henderson State University's own published tuition, room and board, and flight fees over 4 years, PilotBound estimates about $159,770 all in for an in-state student and $172,010 out of state. That is a sum of the school's published figures, not the school's own quoted package price, and flight fees are billed pay-as-you-go on top of tuition rather than as a fixed bill.
- How much are flight fees at Henderson State University?
- Henderson State University publishes about $76,370 for the whole flight sequence its 4-year bachelor's degree trains (2026-27), separate from and on top of tuition. That figure is priced at FAA-minimum hours, so a realistic total runs higher, often by around 40 percent. Flight fees move with your pace and the hours you actually fly, which is why they are the least predictable line in a collegiate aviation budget.
- What is tuition at Henderson State University?
- Henderson State University publishes about $8,250 per year in-state and $11,310 out of state for 2026-27. Over the 4-year program that is roughly $33,000 versus $45,240, before room and board and before any flight fees. Residency is usually the largest single lever on a collegiate aviation budget.
- Does an aviation degree from Henderson State University lower the airline hour requirement?
- Yes. Henderson State University's 4-year bachelor's aviation degree is a qualifying degree under 14 CFR 61.160, which lets you hold a restricted ATP at 1,000 hours instead of the standard 1,500. That is the concrete thing the degree buys beyond the credential itself, and it is worth weighing against the tuition and room and board a non-degree path does not carry.
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Figures are Henderson State University's own published tuition, room & board, and flight fees, summed by PilotBound into a planning estimate. They are not the school's quoted program price, and they will differ from a student's actual cost. Flight fees are pay-as-you-go and vary with a student's pace. Confirm current numbers with the school. The 1,000-hour airline minimum comes from a qualifying degree under 14 CFR 61.160. PilotBound is not affiliated with Henderson State University. Disclaimer & removal policy.