BS in Planetary Science

What is a Planetary Science Degree?

One of Florida Tech’s most prestigious space science degree programs, the planetary science degree option is designed to meet the needs of students intending to pursue graduate studies in space physics, geophysical sciences, and planetary sciences.

The program also provides professional preparation to students who intend to pursue a career in aerospace and related industries. Established alongside the US space program, Florida Tech has one of the oldest and most well-known collections of space science degree programs in the country, including the planetary science degree.

Gain Practical Experience

Whether you want to study the effects of solar activity, examine the properties of planetary bodies in our solar system, or unlock the mysteries of planets around other stars, a planetary science degree from Florida Tech gives you a strong background in physics and hands-on experience with space science technologies.

Home to all physics and space sciences programs, the Olin Physical Sciences Center includes two large multi-use lecture/demonstration classrooms and the Olin Observatory, which houses our 0.8-m Ortega Telescope. Faculty are involved in NASA’s Kepler exoplanet mission, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, and the Cassini mission to Saturn and Titan, and study solar system objects from Mercury to the Kuiper Belt and beyond.

Through study, independent research, and internship opportunities, students gain practical experience, an enhanced job search portfolio, and the perfect preparation for graduate school or employment.

Why Pursue a Planetary Science Degree at Florida Tech?

Florida Tech students benefit from a close-knit academic community and small student-to-faculty ratio, something not usually found at the average planetary science college.

This is unique when you consider that we are one of the largest earth and space science programs in the US in terms of the number of undergraduate degrees awarded annually. This is high praise from the American Institute of Physics for Florida Tech and an important reason to consider enrolling in our planetary science program. In fact, Florida Tech is one of only a few universities in the world to offer a BS in Planetary Science. The unique program and innovative curriculum make Florida Tech an exciting option for students interested in studying planetary science.

Internationally Recognized Faculty — Personalized Attention

Another reason Florida Tech is a great college is its faculty. Florida Tech faculty members are top research scientists who truly care about student success. Our professors give their highest priorities to both teaching and research, which involve real-world applications. There are many opportunities for research, which give students a chance to develop a strong working relationship with their professors in a hands-on learning environment.

Professors actively encourage students to join one of the various research groups in the department as early as their first year. Students who work closely with professors doing research work with data from spacecraft such as the Hubble Space Telescope, the Cassini mission, or the Kepler Space Telescope. In the planetary science program, professors at Florida Tech work on space weather, solar physics, planetary geology, exoplanets, astrobiology, and the science of human space flight.

Located in the Heart of Florida’s High-Tech Corridor

Florida Tech is the perfect place for a BS in Planetary Science. The 130-acre campus is located on the Space Coast (so named because of the presence of NASA and the Kennedy Space Center on Cape Canaveral just north of us), minutes away from the Indian River Lagoon, the most diverse estuary in North America.

The area has the fifth-largest high-tech workforce in the country, with more than 5,000 high-tech corporations and government and military organizations located nearby. This workforce also provides an abundance of internship and employment opportunities.

Florida Tech is just over the causeway from the Atlantic Ocean with its 72 miles of beautiful beaches, and a short trip to the Florida Keys or the Orlando theme parks. We also have a rich campus life that includes a wide range of intramural and collegiate sports, clubs, and social activities.

Build Lasting Professional Relationships Through Campus Organizations

Beyond the classroom, planetary science degree majors build leadership and professional experience through participation in academic organizations like Sigma Pi Sigma (the national physics honor society), student government, and over 100 other campus-wide student organizations. Campus life offers a wide range of activities for students from intramural and intercollegiate sports, to area events and activities.

Students for the Exploration and Development of Space is a student-run organization that allows members to meet regularly to discuss space news and activism. They also take part in networking to allow them to make the connections to secure planetary science internships and careers after college.

The Student Astronomical Society is another organization that focuses on space; these students peer through high-tech telescopes from around the world and beyond. Utilizing telescopes from Florida Tech and across the globe, they can observe fascinating cosmic events and phenomena.

It All Started With 37 Cents

Florida Tech was founded in 1958 as "Brevard Engineering College." It all started as an idea in the mind of Jerome P. Keuper, a visionary physicist working at Cape Canaveral.

As university lore would have it, Keuper expressed his desire to create a scientific and technological university to a friend over drinks at a local pub. Overhearing the conversation, a fellow patron pushed 37 cents in change across the bar and said, “There’s your first donation, Jerry. Now, go and build that college.”

So, Keuper did. And what started with 37 cents as a night school for the early “missilemen” of the U.S. space program is now a comprehensive national research university recognized worldwide for excellence in preparing students for careers of the future.

Core Values

• Research for the Benefit of All Humankind
• Education for a Lifetime of Success
• Global Citizenship for a Better World

Mission Statement

Florida Institute of Technology’s mission is to provide high-quality education to a culturally diverse student body in order to prepare students for entering the global workforce, seeking higher-education opportunities, and serving within their communities. The university also seeks to expand knowledge through basic and applied research and to serve the diverse economic, cultural, and societal needs of our local, state, national and international constituencies.

In support of this mission, we are committed to:

• Promoting student development by fostering and sustaining a productive institutional culture of assessment that leads to the continuous improvement of academic and administrative programs
• Developing an organizational culture that values and encourages intellectual curiosity, a sense of belonging and shared purpose among faculty, students, and staff, and the pursuit of excellence in all endeavors
• Recruiting and developing excellent faculty to become leaders in their respective fields and internationally recognized scholars
• Achieving recognition as an effective, innovative, technology-focused educational and research institution
• Recruiting and retaining an excellent, highly select, and culturally diverse student body
• Continually improving the quality of campus life for all members of the university community
• Providing personal and career growth opportunities for both traditional and nontraditional students and members of the faculty and staff
• Securing and maintaining professional accreditation for all appropriate programs

We Are Florida Tech

What we are is a private, coeducational, residential, research-intensive, doctoral-granting university located in Melbourne on Florida’s sunny “Space Coast.” But who we are is so much more. We are a community of researchers, scholars, and learners hailing from all around the world. We are engineers, aviators, innovators, leaders, educators, athletes, and astronauts. We have the brains of rocket scientists and the hearts of Panthers. We are Florida Tech.

We Are Relentless

Florida Tech is a university of leaders and learners—a diverse community of students, staff, faculty, and alumni who are united in the relentless pursuit of greatness.

We Are International

Students from more than 90 countries worldwide choose to live and learn at Florida Tech, making us a truly global university. When we say #YouAreWelcomeHere, we mean it.

We Create The Future

One of the primary tenets of Florida Tech’s mission is advancing science and technology for the benefit of Earth and all of its inhabitants. So, that’s what we do.

We Have Panther Pride

You may feel it the first time you visit the campus, the day you graduate, or at some point in between. But when you do, you’ll see that Panther Pride is more than school spirit. It’s a family.

We Make Connections

Florida Tech is proud to be part of the Brevard County community and welcomes its neighbors to explore the many personal, professional, corporate, and cultural opportunities we have to offer.

We Are STEM

There's a reason Florida Tech is known as Florida's STEM University™. To put it simply: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math are in our DNA. This makes STEM a driving force behind who we are, what we do, and why we exist.