![First-year Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University students participate in the 2025 convocation ceremony at the Prescott, Arizona, campus. [Credit: Embry‑Riddle/Wilson Van Ness]](https://flyingmag1.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/prescott-campus-convocation.jpg?width=2048&height=1365)
The school year has just begun but already Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is breaking attendance records.
According to ERAU officials, the college welcomed 10,121 new students across its three campuses for the 2025-26 academic year.
ERAU said 3,323 students representing undergraduate and graduate levels are matriculating at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Florida, and Prescott, Arizona. That represents a 3.6 percent increase over last year’s incoming class.
To further break it down, 2,410 of those are on the Daytona Beach campus and represent all 50 states and 69 countries. The total enrollment at Daytona Beach now stands at 8,748, up 24 percent since 2020.
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At the Prescott campus, 913 new undergraduates are from 48 states and 21 countries. This is the second-highest number of students since the Arizona campus opened in 1978.
Meanwhile, the number of new students enrolled in ERAU’s Worldwide campus (online) for the most recent full academic year increased to 6,650—an increase of 4.3 percent over 2023-24 and the highest since the 2020-21 academic year.
![The Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University Honors Class of 2029 gathers on the Daytona Beach, Florida, campus. [Credit: Embry‑Riddle/David Massey]](https://flyingmag1.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/honors-program-daytona-beach-campus.jpg?width=1024&height=522)
School officials view these figures as a fine way to begin celebrating the centennial year for ERAU.
“As Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University celebrates its centennial year—100 years of excellence in aviation and aerospace education—our students embody the ambition, intellect and dedication that have shaped our institution’s distinguished legacy,” said Embry‑Riddle president P. Barry Butler in a news release.
According to U.S. News & World Report, Embry-Riddle is known for its aerospace engineering programs. Daytona Beach ranked among the nation’s top five engineering schools with Ph.D. programs, and Prescott was the highest ranked of those institutions without doctoral programs.
“Our reputation as the leading global aviation and aerospace university has fueled extraordinary interest in earning an Embry‑Riddle degree,” said Jason Ruckert, ERAU’s senior vice president for enrollment, management, marketing, and student affairs. “With 95 percent of graduates either employed or continuing their education within a year after graduation, the value of an Embry‑Riddle degree is evident.”
School officials also pointed out that ERAU boasts many alumni who are leaders in the aviation and aerospace industries as well as academia and the military.
