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2023 Best Value Colleges for Communications (Income $0-$30k)

159 Ranked Colleges
12,001 Degrees Awarded
$7,600 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2020-2021, 12,001 people earned their degree in communications, making the major the 67th most popular in the United States.

This year’s “Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 159 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in communications. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great communications programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the communications program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Degree Other Award Levels
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When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 25 Best Value Colleges for Communications (Income $0-$30k)

1

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Champaign, Illinois, this large public school awarded 291 degrees to qualified ’s communication arts students in 2020-2021.

UIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Communications Schools” list. It costs about $4,858 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UIUC.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Communications Report

2
Wake Forest University crest
Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem, North Carolina

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Wake Forest University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. Wake Forest University is located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 156 ’s communication arts degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k list, Wake Forest University has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. It costs about $10,401 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Wake Forest University.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full Wake Forest University Communications Report

3
Cornell crest
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Cornell University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Ithaca, New York, and it awarded 99 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

Cornell also made our “Best Communications Schools” list, coming in at #1. The estimated yearly cost for Cornell University is $5,244 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communications at Cornell

4
Purdue crest
Purdue University - Main Campus
West Lafayette, Indiana

Out of the 159 schools in the Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #4 spot on the list. West Lafayette, Indiana is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s communication arts degrees to 149 students in 2020-2021.

Purdue did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Communications Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Purdue is $5,995 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Communications at Purdue

5

Out of the 159 schools in the Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Central New Mexico Community College landed the #5 spot on the list. Central New Mexico Community College is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 71 ’s communication arts degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, CNM is also in the top of our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. It costs about $1,994 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CNM.

Read more about Communications at CNM

6

University of California - Davis ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. Davis, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s communication arts degrees to 300 students in 2020-2021.

UC Davis also took the #6 spot in our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. It costs about $10,006 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of California - Davis.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Communications at UC Davis

7

University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #7. Located in Santa Barbara, California, this large public school handed out 469 degrees to qualified ’s communication arts students in 2020-2021.

UCSB also took the #5 spot in our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Santa Barbara is $10,568 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.

Read more about Communications at University of California - Santa Barbara

8

With a ranking of #8, University of California - San Diego did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in La Jolla, California, this large public school handed out 271 degrees to qualified ’s communication arts students in 2020-2021.

UCSD did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Communications Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for UCSD is $9,823 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Communications at UCSD

9
Baruch crest
Baruch College
New York, New York

Baruch College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Baruch is a fairly large public school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 64 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend Baruch College is $493 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Baruch College Communications Report

10

Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #10. Texas A&M University - College Station is a large public school situated in College Station, Texas. It awarded 471 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

Texas A&M College Station not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Communications Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Texas A&M College Station is $11,220 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communications at Texas A&M University - College Station

11

The City College of New York landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. The City College of New York is a fairly large public school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 82 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

The estimated yearly cost for CCNY is $1,254 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communications at CCNY

12
Boston U crest
Boston University
Boston, Massachusetts

With a ranking of #12, Boston University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. Boston University is located in Boston, Massachusetts and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 456 ’s communication arts degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k list, Boston U has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Boston U is $12,982 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.

Full Boston U Communications Report

13
UNF crest
University of North Florida
Jacksonville, Florida

With a ranking of #13, University of North Florida did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of North Florida is a public institution located in Jacksonville, Florida. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 201 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

It costs about $4,367 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UNF.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communications at UNF

14

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. UT Rio Grande Valley is a large school located in Edinburg, Texas that handed out 12 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend UT Rio Grande Valley is $2,191 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full UT Rio Grande Valley Communications Report

15
Towson crest
Towson University
Towson, Maryland

Towson University landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Towson, Maryland is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s communication arts degrees to 152 students in 2020-2021.

Towson did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #16 on our “Best Communications Schools” list. It costs about $7,956 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Towson.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.

Read more about Communications at Towson University

16

University of Missouri - St Louis did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #16. UMSL is a public institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 80 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend University of Missouri - St Louis is $9,991 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full UMSL Communications Report

17
Oakland crest
Oakland University
Rochester Hills, Michigan

Oakland University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Oakland University is a public institution located in Rochester Hills, Michigan. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 144 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend Oakland University is $8,949 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communications at Oakland University

18

University of Massachusetts Amherst did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #18. This large school is located in Amherst, Massachusetts, and it awarded 325 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UMass Amherst, the school also landed the #13 spot in our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. It costs about $12,033 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Massachusetts Amherst.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Full University of Massachusetts Amherst Communications Report

19

Texas A&M International University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. This medium-sized school is located in Laredo, Texas, and it awarded 41 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

The yearly cost to attend Texas A&M International University is $3,093 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Communications at Texas A&M International University

20

University of Illinois at Chicago came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UIC is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 126 ’s communication arts degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on this list, UIC is in the top on our “Best Communications Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Communications Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for UIC is $10,549 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full University of Illinois at Chicago Communications Report

21
St. Cloud State University crest
Saint Cloud State University
Saint Cloud, Minnesota

Saint Cloud State University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Saint Cloud State University is located in Saint Cloud, Minnesota and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 46 ’s communication arts degrees to qualified students.

The yearly cost to attend St. Cloud State University is $10,348 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Communications at Saint Cloud State University

22
UH crest
University of Houston
Houston, Texas

University of Houston did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #22. Located in Houston, Texas, this large public school awarded 31 diplomas to qualified ’s communication arts students in 2020-2021.

It costs about $10,533 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UH.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Communications at UH

23

University of Wisconsin - Whitewater landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UW - Whitewater is located in Whitewater, Wisconsin and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 117 ’s communication arts degrees to qualified students.

UW - Whitewater also took the #22 spot in our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Wisconsin - Whitewater is $8,143 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Communications at University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

24

University of Wisconsin - Parkside ranked #24 on this year’s Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. UW - Parkside is a small public school situated in Kenosha, Wisconsin. It awarded 32 ’s communication arts degrees in 2020-2021.

It costs about $6,741 for Communication Arts students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Wisconsin - Parkside.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full UW - Parkside Communications Report

25

University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire ranked #25 on this year’s Best Value Communication Arts Schools For Those Making $0-$30k list. UW - Eau Claire is a public institution located in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 55 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UW - Eau Claire is also in the top of our “Best Communications Schools” ranking. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Communications Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire is $9,547 for communication arts students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Communications at University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire

Notes and References

References

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