Special Focus Two-Year: Technical ProfessionsPrivate nonprofit

Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics

West Mifflin, Pennsylvania·Private not-for-profit, 2-year·Mid East·pia.edu
6-yr Graduation
76%
+10.0pp vs Special Focus Two-Year: Technical Professions
Total enrollment
663
peer median 465
Avg net price
$32,618
+$10k vs Special Focus Two-Year: Technical Professions
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About

The Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics (PIA) is a private trade school focused on aviation-related programs with its main location in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania. The institution's headquarters is at the Allegheny County Airport and it has three branch campuses. PIA's aviation programs are accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges.

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
76%+10.0pp vs Special Focus Two-Year: Technical Professions
Full-time retention
78%

Pell equity

17.3pp gap
Pell recipients
67%60 of 90
Non-Pell (all)
84%91 of 108
Subsidized loan, no Pell
87%48 of 55
No Federal Aid
81%43 of 53

Non-Pell students graduate at a 17.3-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Source: IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) — Pell/SSL cohort, 2024 cohort.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 3 Title IV programs, 1 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 2 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
3
Passing
1
33.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

3programs
  • Passing1 · 33.3%
  • No Data2 · 66.7%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
1
No data
2

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

1
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians
Associate Degree · Mechanic And Repair Technologies/Technicians
+127.4%
$79,146 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

2
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians
Associate Degree · Mechanic And Repair Technologies/Technicians
18%
$14,498 debt · $79,146 earn
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians
Undergraduate Certificate · Mechanic And Repair Technologies/Technicians
15%
$12,000 debt · $81,408 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges

Accredited since 1970Next review Apr 2030

Action history · 5

  1. Aug 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges
  2. May 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges
  3. Jun 2020Removal of Monitoring Status
    Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges
  4. Sep 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges
  5. Sep 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$28,445
$30–48k$29,124
$48–75k$30,623
$75–110k$35,275
$110k+$36,940

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price (private)
$32,618
+$10,338vs Special Focus Two-Year: Technical Professions median $22,280
Federal loans
66.0%
In-state tuition
$18,730
Out-of-state
$18,730

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 485 students received $2.5M in Pell grants, alongside $5.7M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
485
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$2.5M
$2,545,283 total
Direct Loans
$5.7M
1,117 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

0k
20
0k
21
0k
22
0k
23
0k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$2.1M
502 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$2.2M
531 loan awards
Parent PLUS$1.5M
84 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 209 borrowers who entered repayment, 3 (1.4%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
1.4%
-0.9pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
209
Defaulted
3
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
9.0%
2017
14.2%
2018
7.1%
2019
1.4%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at PIA

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs4
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

135 total completions
01Mechanic
135100.0%
02Engineering Tech
00.0%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
663
12-mo unduplicated
1,065
Undergraduate
1,065
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
93%993
Women
7%72

Race / ethnicity composition

White
80.4%
Black
6.3%
Hispanic
5.6%
Two or more
3.3%
Asian
2.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.8%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.8%
Non-resident
0.4%
Unknown
0.3%

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
0.00
0 offenses · 591 students

3-year trend

0.002 yrs ago0.001 yr ago0.00Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
0
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
0
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

No criminal offenses reported.

By location

0total

    VAWA offenses

    0
    Domestic violence
    0
    Dating violence
    0
    Stalking
    0 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

    Hate crimes by bias

    No hate crimes reported.

    Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

    CategoryArrestsReferrals
    Weapons00
    Drugs00
    Liquor00

    Residence-hall fires

    No residence-hall fires reported.

    Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

    Student-faculty ratio

    Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

    Student-to-faculty
    15.0:1
    Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
    42

    PIA vs Peer comparison

    The peer institutions PIA selected for federal comparison reporting.

    GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
    This institutionPeer median

    A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

    Carnegie
    SubjectPittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics
    76%663$32,618Special Focus Two-Year: Technical Professions
    410$15,576
    272$27,320
    385$25,437
    695$24,800
    45%18.5%684$18,953Baccalaureate
    118$15,827Special Focus Two-Year: Health Professions
    465$8,095Community College
    58%51.3%836$12,513Baccalaureate
    200$14,190
    241$27,871
    Pittsburgh Technical College
    74%85.9%$25,754Baccalaureate
    75.0%475$19,760Special Focus Two-Year: Technical Professions
    76.9%840$29,776Baccalaureate
    Peer group median66%75.0%465$22,280

    Institutions like PIA

    Explore the federal data for institutions in PIA's comparison group.

    Reports & documents (1)

    Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.

    Grants & funding (3)

    Federal grant awards and open funding opportunities awarded to this institution.

    Frequently asked questions about Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics

    Quick answers to the questions most often asked about PIA.

    What is the graduation rate at Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics?

    Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics reports a 6-year graduation rate of 76% per the latest IPEDS.

    How many students attend Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics?

    Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics reports a total enrollment of 663 students per the latest IPEDS.

    What is the average net price at Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics?

    The average net price at Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics is $32,618 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

    Where is Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics located?

    Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics is located in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania 15122.

    About the data on this page

    Every figure comes from an official federal or public source. Here is each one and the release it is currently on.

    IPEDS2025 provisional data (Fall 2025–26 release, July 28, 2026)
    Enrollment, completions, graduation rates, tuition, financial aid, staffing, and finance for every U.S. institution in federal student aid programs.
    College ScorecardJune 10, 2026 release (merged 2025–26 files)
    Institution and field-of-study costs, graduate earnings, debt, completion, and admissions outcomes compiled from federal aid records, tax data, and IPEDS.
    FVT/GE program performanceProvisional preview, May 18, 2026 release
    Program-level debt-to-earnings and earnings-premium measures behind the FVT/GE and STATS accountability frameworks.
    DAPIP accreditationContinuously refreshed
    Accreditation status for institutions and programs, reported by recognized accrediting agencies.
    Federal Pell Grant volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
    Pell Grant recipient counts, award amounts, and disbursements by institution and award year.
    Federal student loan volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
    Federal Direct Loan recipient counts and disbursement volume by institution and award year.
    Cohort Default RatesFY 2022 official rates
    Institution-level federal student loan default rates, measuring borrowers who default within three years of entering repayment.
    Equity in Athletics (EADA)Academic year 2024–25
    Athletics participation, coaching, revenues, and expenses by sport and gender for Title IV institutions.
    Campus Safety & SecurityData through reporting year 2024
    Criminal offenses, arrests, disciplinary actions, VAWA offenses, and fire statistics reported by campus under the Clery Act.

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