2020 Universities Identified as Preferred Suppliers to A&D Hiring Managers

September 15, 2020

Aviation Week Network Unveils the 2020 Universities Identified as Preferred Suppliers to Aerospace and Defense Hiring Managers

New York, September 8, 2020 - Aviation Week Network today announces the university rankings from Aviation Week Network’s annual Workforce Study, sponsored by PwC and in partnership with American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Aerospace Industries Association. Aviation Week Network's annual Workforce Study is the industry's single source of demographic and hiring data since 1997 that identifies trends in technological challenges, leadership, demographics and ranks the top universities for A&D recruitment.

While there are numerous university rankings, the Aviation Week Network Workforce Study uniquely identifies the universities selected by aerospace and defense companies’ critical complex skills, highest volume of new graduate hiring, and investment in research and development.

The top universities in these three categories include:

Hiring for critical skills (A&D companies call them preferred suppliers):

  1. Georgia Institute of Technology
  2. University of Central Florida
  3. University of Washington

Highest volume of new graduate hiring:

  1. University of Central Florida
  2. University of Maryland
  3. Pennsylvania State University

Where A&D companies invest in research and development:

  1. Georgia Institute of Technology
  2. University of California, Los Angeles
  3. University of Colorado, Boulder

“The Aviation Week Network Workforce Study differs from other university ranking polls in one simple way—the universities and colleges are those that companies choose as their primary resources for the talented workforce needed for the future,” said Greg Hamilton, president of Aviation Week Network. “Companies were asked to provide their top three universities in each category, with the aggregated data providing the final list of top schools.”

In addition, the annual Workforce Study surveys a 10% random sample of engineering students, this year at 14 U.S. universities. Of the students responding, 72% indicate an interest in careers in aerospace, primarily on the basis of the continued vast advances in technology and opportunity for career development over time. Students also indicated that reputation of a university’s specific academic program is on par with cost and location as the primary drivers in selecting where they will study.

In addition to the Workforce Study, Aviation Week Network will host a webinar called “Preparing Workforce Strategies for a Post-Pandemic World” on September 11th at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Click here to register. For more information on the Workforce study, visit aviationweek.com/workforce.