Post job

Airline attendant education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an airline attendant. Airline attendants usually study hospitality management, criminal justice, or human services. 33% of airline attendants hold a high school diploma, and 33% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 14 real airline attendant resumes to see exactly what airline attendant education sections show.

The most common colleges for airline attendants are the Bryan College and the Bryan College.

There are also many online airline attendant courses to help get the education required to be an airline attendant.

What education do you need to become an airline attendant?

What degree do you need to be an airline attendant?

The most common degree for airline attendants is high school diploma, with 33% of airline attendants earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 33% and associate degree degree at 17%.
  • High School Diploma, 33%
  • Associate, 33%
  • Bachelor's, 17%
  • Other Degrees, 17%

What should I major in to become an airline attendant?

You should major in hospitality management to become an airline attendant. 17% of airline attendants major in hospitality management. Other common majors for an airline attendant include criminal justice and human services.

Most common colleges for airline attendants

Airline attendants often get their degrees at Bryan College, Minnesota State University - Mankato, and Miami Dade College. Here are the most common colleges for airline attendants in the US based on their resumes.
Airline attendant common collegePercentages
Bryan College33.33%
Minnesota State University - Mankato33.33%
Miami Dade College33.33%

Best majors for airline attendants

Best colleges for airline attendants

The best colleges for airline attendants are University of Southern California, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Washington University in St Louis.

An airline attendant with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for airline attendants. 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 airline attendants.

1. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Enrollment

32,072

2. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Enrollment

24,163

3. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

4. San Jose State University

San Jose, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,796

Enrollment

27,125

5. Minnesota State University - Mankato

Mankato, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$8,184

Enrollment

11,675

6. University of Texas at Austin

Austin, TX • Private

In-state tuition

$10,610

Enrollment

40,329

7. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

8. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Enrollment

31,503

9. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

10. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

20 best online courses for airline attendants

Advertising disclosure

1. International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness

coursera

Whether you've traveled before or not, living and working overseas can be challenging. Learn how best to prepare and make the most of your time internationally. This course will prepare you to work and live overseas. It explores the epidemiology of common morbidity and mortality among travelers and examines key prevention, safety, and travel medicine principles and services to contextualize risks and maintain wellness. The course reviews applicable interventions, appropriate vaccines, and...

2. ISO 22000:2018. Food Safety Management System

udemy
4.4
(976)

Understand the requirements for a food safety management system applicable for any organization in the food chain...

3. Customer Service Mastery: Delight Every Customer

udemy
4.7
(18,204)

Master Customer Service using this practical customer care course...

4. Fundamentals of Logistics, Supply Chain & Customer Service

udemy
4.5
(3,822)

Learn Logistics, Supply Chain and Customer Service. 3 Courses in 1...

5. Airline Operations: Flight Planning and Flight Dispatch

udemy
4.3
(702)

Airline Operations: Master the essentials of aviation - aircraft operational control and dispatch...

6. Food Safety for Managers and Supervisors

udemy
4.3
(489)

The Highfield Food Safety Level 3 syllabus presented in two hours of video tutorials. Boost your food safety knowledge...

7. Fun food safety and sanitation course

udemy
4.6
(539)

The food safety course will help prepare you for safely working in a kitchen and food handler tests like Servesafe...

8. Customer Service & Support For Customer Service Executives

udemy
4.5
(941)

Learn Customer Service Skills & Provide Excellent Customer Support, Customer Experience & How To Manage Upset Customers...

9. Customer Service, Customer Support, And Customer Experience

udemy
4.6
(2,666)

Customer service, customer support, and customer experience training. Loyal clients through world-class customer service...

10. [2023] Customer Service 2.0: Learn Digital Customer Service

udemy
4.5
(3,956)

Used by Chase®, Intel®, & more! Learn soft skills, social media customer service, diagnosing user problems, & more...

11. Customer Service

udemy
4.6
(11,267)

How to Approach New Customers and Maintain Existing Ones...

12. Customer Service: 6 Keys To Exceptional Customer Service

udemy
4.6
(601)

Master Customer Satisfaction & Astonish Your Customers With A+ Customer Service...

13. Customer Service Basics: Improve your Service now

udemy
4.5
(889)

The basic golden rules to kickstart your service...

14. Your Customer Service Toolbox: Best Practices for Beginners

udemy
4.5
(4,101)

Excel as a front-line customer service agent using problem-solving & relationship-building skills, etiquette, and more...

15. The Customer: Build a Customer Service Strategy (BITE SIZE)

udemy
4.5
(10,168)

For you and your team to be successful in providing great customer service, start by putting your customer first...

16. SAP Customer Service (CS/SM) - Service Management module

udemy
4.4
(960)

Real World SAP CS and SD, Repair Orders, Service Orders, Service Contracts...

17. Customer Service Success: Take Your Skills to the Next Level

udemy
4.5
(2,276)

3-in-1 Customer Service Training: Levels 1, 2, 3 Improve Your Soft Communication Skills, Customer Support & Experience...

18. Customer Service: Keep 'em coming back!

udemy
4.5
(3,150)

How to give the best customer service in your industry and keep those customers raving about your business...

19. OSHA Workplace Safety (General Industry 6 Hr Class)

udemy
4.5
(2,583)

Learn the requirements and standards associated with OSHA and workplace safety. Safety best practices for the workplace...

20. Brilliant Customer Service: How to Impress your Customers!

udemy
4.7
(12,891)

Enhance your customer support and truly differentiate yourself from your competition!...

Top 10 most affordable universities for airline attendants

The most affordable schools for airline attendants are SUNY Farmingdale, california state university - los angeles, and california state university - long beach.

If the best universities for airline attendants 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 airline attendants.

1. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

2. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

3. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

4. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

5. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

6. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

7. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

8. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,886

Cost of attendance

17,645

9. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

10. Minot State University

Minot, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$7,064

Cost of attendance

15,576

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for airline attendants

The hardest universities for airline attendants to get into are University of Southern California, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Washington University in St Louis.

Some great schools for airline attendants 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 airline attendants 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 Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

2. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,398

3. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

5. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

6. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,466

7. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

8. Baylor University

Waco, TX • Private

Admissions rate

39%

SAT average

1,307

9. University of Texas at Austin

Austin, TX • Private

Admissions rate

39%

SAT average

1,367

10. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for airline attendants

The easiest schools for airline attendants to get into are Barry University, mount saint mary's university, and felician university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an airline attendant 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 airline attendants.

1. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

2. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

3. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

4. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

5. Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,002

6. Texas Woman's University

Denton, TX • Private

Admissions rate

87%

SAT average

1,059

7. The University of Texas Permian Basin

Odessa, TX • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,046

8. Ottawa University

Ottawa, KS • Private

Admissions rate

78%

SAT average

1,024

9. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

10. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

Average airline attendant salary by education level

Airline attendants with a Bachelor's degree earn more than those without, at $31,193 annually. With a Associate degree, airline attendants earn a median annual income of $30,982 compared to $30,795 for airline attendants with an High School Diploma degree.
Airline attendant education levelAirline attendant salary
High School Diploma or Less$30,795
Bachelor's Degree$31,193
Some College/ Associate Degree$30,982

Airline attendant education FAQs

Search for airline attendant jobs

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.

Browse transportation jobs