[9] On December 17, 1925, Talton Higbee Embry and John Paul Riddle founded the Embry–Riddle Company at Lunken Airport in Cincinnati, Ohio.

[12] Preempting the announced closure of Tamiami Airport, where the Embry–Riddle Aeronautical Institute was conducting its flight operations, the school was moved to Daytona Beach, Florida in April 1965.

[18] The programs in aeronautics, air traffic management, applied meteorology, and aerospace studies are certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Built adjacent to the Daytona Beach International Airport, the campus is connected to an aircraft ramp owned by the university for flight training.

Facilities at the Prescott Campus include the Aerospace Experimentation and Fabrication Building, a wind tunnel lab with one supersonic and four subsonic wind tunnels, the aviation safety center with an accident investigation lab, library, the 48,000 sq ft (4,500 m2) academic complex, the engineering and technology center, chapel, dining hall, student union and residence halls.

Students in FYE housing are grouped together by major, when possible, and reside with a staff that is specially trained to handle first-year transitional issues.

All first-year students who have graduated high school within 12 months of matriculation are required to live in University housing for their first full academic year.

[39] It offers 40 degree programs covering many areas in aviation, business, communication, computers, emergency services, engineering, human factors, management, safety, security, logistics, and unmanned systems.

The same technologies and expertise faculty have developed and applied to aerospace and aviation related research, they now apply directly to other areas – space systems, high-performance vehicles, unmanned and autonomous systems, robotics, alternative and sustainable energy, medical human factors, commercial space operations and more.

[45] The university is expanding its partnerships with industry in developing the Aerospace Research and Technology Park adjacent to the Daytona Beach campus.

Embry–Riddle also manages the FAA NextGen Florida Test Bed, where technology is being developed that will support the nation's expanding air transportation needs.

Research will contribute to reducing fuel consumption and associated emissions, improving situational awareness for pilots, and providing safer and more efficient passenger service.

FireSpring awarded each startup $25,000 and Embry–Riddle offered each entrepreneurial support, seed funding, mentorship and a home base at the new university research park.

They researched and designed in the areas of: gas-turbine stability, drone data processing and communications, medical safety devices and spacecraft transportation.

[46] At the Prescott Campus, $60,000 in Eagle-Prize (E-Prize) Grants is available each year for student teams participating in collegiate, national or international design or research competitions.

Teams that participate in high-stature competitions, have a diverse membership and demonstrate a great likelihood of success with sound methodology and clear business plans are most likely to receive funding.

[47] Ignite Grants, part of Embry–Riddle's Quality Enhancement Plan, are available up to $48,000 annually for students wishing to participate in research and innovation under the tutelage of a faculty mentor.

[51] During their time in the NAIA, the athletics program at the Daytona Beach Campus won the Sun Conference Commissioner's Cup for 15 consecutive years.

[53] Embry-Riddle earned four placements in the U.S. News & World Report 2023 Best Colleges rankings in the Regional Universities South category.