Aviation degree · Denver, CO · Checked September 28, 2026
What an aviation degree at Metropolitan State University of Denver 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.
Section 1Cost estimate
PilotBound all-in estimate
$194K
In-state, all-in
$264K
Out-of-state, all-in
Tuition + room & board (4 years) + whole-program flight fees. Sourced figures summed, not the school's quoted package. Tuition changes yearly.
The numbers, with sources
- Tuition (in-state)
- $53,072
- $13,268/yr × 42026-27Source
- Resident base tuition $442.25/credit hour x 30 credits/yr (before the COF stipend); mandatory fees are billed on top.
- Tuition (out-of-state)
- $122,964
- $30,741/yr × 42026-27Source
- Non-resident tuition $1,024.70/credit hour x 30 credits/yr.
- Room & board(estimated)
- $53,200
- $13,300/yr × 42025-26Source
- MSU Denver is a primarily commuter, urban campus and does not publish a single combined room & board figure on its bursar pages.
- Flight training (whole program)(estimated)
- $87,500
- 2026-27Source
- This school publishes no whole-program flight total. The figure is a PilotBound estimate, not the school's, built from its own published rates or fees.
- MSU Denver publishes only a range, $80,000-$95,000, for flight training 'in addition to tuition and fees,' with no per-rating breakdown. Flight is completed at partner schools (not in-house). $87,500 is the midpoint of MSU's own published range; which ratings it covers is not itemized, so plan for the instructor ratings on top. The page carries no academic year.
- All-in (in-state)
- $193,772
Section 2Paying for it
Two ways to cover $193,772.
Win what you can first, then borrow only what is left. Neither figure assumes anything about you: one is what our scholarship directory holds, the other is what the lenders publish.
- Money you keepScholarships you could apply for51 open to anyone, plus 1 in Colorado. Top awards reach $22,200.
- Walt and Terry Barbo PPL Scholarship$2,500 · Opens Jan 1, 2027
- 52
- Money you pay backLenders that cover $193,772Four of the six lenders in our comparison lend this much. That is whether a loan this size is on offer, not whether you would be approved.
- 4 of 6
Section 3Add to my plan
Turn this into a plan.
A degree is one path. Build a free plan to map every step to your checkride and see it against the other routes.
Build your free planSee how this stacks up against Part 61, Part 141, an academy, and a 2-year degree.
Compare the pathsSection 4In the app
Section 5Questions
- How much does an aviation degree at Metropolitan State University of Denver cost?
- Summing Metropolitan State University of Denver's own published tuition, room and board, and flight fees over 4 years, PilotBound estimates about $193,772 all in for an in-state student and $263,664 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 Metropolitan State University of Denver?
- Metropolitan State University of Denver publishes about $87,500 for the whole flight sequence its 4-year bachelor's degree trains (2026-27), separate from and on top of tuition. That figure is incomplete: the school does not price every rating the degree trains, so the full sequence costs more. 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 Metropolitan State University of Denver?
- Metropolitan State University of Denver publishes about $13,268 per year in-state and $30,741 out of state for 2026-27. Over the 4-year program that is roughly $53,072 versus $122,964, 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 Metropolitan State University of Denver lower the airline hour requirement?
- Yes. Metropolitan State University of Denver'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.
Section 6Sources
Tuition and room & board are Metropolitan State University of Denver's own published figures. The flight total is NOT: Metropolitan State University of Denver publishes no whole-program flight cost, so that line is a PilotBound estimate and is marked as one above. 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 Metropolitan State University of Denver. Disclaimer & removal policy.
Primary sources: msudenver.edu·msudenver.edu
Other Colorado aviation degree programs
- Aims Community College · Greeley
- Colorado Mesa University (CMU Tech) · Grand Junction
- Colorado Northwestern Community College · Rangely
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