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Air ambulance captain education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an air ambulance captain. Air ambulance captains usually study aviation, business, or nursing. 70% of air ambulance captains hold a bachelor's degree, and 16% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 134 real air ambulance captain resumes to see exactly what air ambulance captain education sections show.

The most common colleges for air ambulance captains are the United States Military Academy and the United States Military Academy.

There are also many online air ambulance captain courses to help get the education required to be an air ambulance captain.

What education do you need to become an air ambulance captain?

What degree do you need to be an air ambulance captain?

The most common degree for air ambulance captains is bachelor's degree, with 70% of air ambulance captains earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 16% and master's degree degree at 6%.
  • Bachelor's, 70%
  • Master's, 16%
  • Associate, 6%
  • Diploma, 3%
  • Other Degrees, 5%

What should I major in to become an air ambulance captain?

You should major in aviation to become an air ambulance captain. 21% of air ambulance captains major in aviation. Other common majors for an air ambulance captain include business and nursing.

Most common colleges for air ambulance captains

Air ambulance captains often get their degrees at United States Military Academy, Arizona State University, and Florida Institute of Technology. Here are the most common colleges for air ambulance captains in the US based on their resumes.
Air ambulance captain common collegePercentages
United States Military Academy13.16%
Arizona State University13.16%
Florida Institute of Technology7.89%
University of Colorado at Boulder5.26%
Purdue University5.26%

Best majors for air ambulance captains

RankMajorPercentages
1Aviation21.4%
2Business14.3%
3Nursing11.4%
4Psychology5.7%
5Biology4.3%

Best colleges for air ambulance captains

The best colleges for air ambulance captains are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and New York University.

An air ambulance captain with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for air ambulance captains. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become air ambulance captains.

1. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Enrollment

9,394

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

3. Baylor University

Waco, TX • Private

In-state tuition

$45,542

Enrollment

14,159

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

5. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Enrollment

9,142

6. Bowling Green State University

Bowling Green, OH • Private

In-state tuition

$11,105

Enrollment

13,729

7. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,808

Enrollment

13,990

8. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$53,308

Enrollment

6,819

9. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

10. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Enrollment

32,072

20 best online courses for air ambulance captains

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1. Air Pollution – a Global Threat to our Health

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2. Introduction to Indoor Air Quality

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4. Air Insulated Electrical Substation Design

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5. Operations and Patient Safety for Healthcare IT Staff

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Now that you've been introduced to the world of Health IT and the important role played by electronic health records (EHRs), we'll focus on other technologies that play a role in maintaining ongoing operations in healthcare. Telemedicine, patient portals, barcode scanners, printers, and medical devices are just some of the technologies that impact providers and patients. As an IT support specialist, you’ll be asked to troubleshoot issues with a wide variety of tools. You'll see a scenario with...

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9. Trauma Emergencies and Care

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10. Traditional herbal medicine in supportive cancer care: From alternative to integrative

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18. 4G LTE: Technology, Architecture And Protocols

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LTE Air Interface, Voice Over LTE (Vo LTE), Security in LTE, LTE EPC Procedures...

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Top 10 most affordable universities for air ambulance captains

The most affordable schools for air ambulance captains are SUNY Farmingdale, california state university - bakersfield, and california state university - los angeles.

If the best universities for air ambulance captains are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for air ambulance captains.

1. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

2. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

3. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

4. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

5. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

6. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

7. Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,992

Cost of attendance

22,430

8. York College of the City University of New York

Jamaica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,158

Cost of attendance

14,204

9. SUNY Polytechnic Institute

Utica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,238

Cost of attendance

21,567

10. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for air ambulance captains

The hardest universities for air ambulance captains to get into are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and New York University.

Some great schools for air ambulance captains are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for air ambulance captains based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

4%

SAT average

1,497

3. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

5. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

6. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,407

7. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

8. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

Admissions rate

40%

SAT average

1,376

9. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

10. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for air ambulance captains

The easiest schools for air ambulance captains to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, d'youville college, and holy names university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an air ambulance captain without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for air ambulance captains.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

3. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

4. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

5. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

6. Nyack College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

999

7. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

8. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

9. Curry College

Milton, MA • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,026

10. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

Average air ambulance captain salary by education level

According to our data, air ambulance captains with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $53,577 annually. Air ambulance captains with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $51,451.
Air ambulance captain education levelAir ambulance captain salary
Master's Degree$53,577
Bachelor's Degree$51,451

Air ambulance captain education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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