2022 Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 68,079 communication and media studies students received their degree, making the major the 9th most popular in the country. In 2017-2018, communication and media studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $32,728 and had an average of $24,931 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southwest region, there were 6,313 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $32,423 and $24,273 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 294 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,605 and $16,886 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in communication and media studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent communication and media studies programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the communication and media studies program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” 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. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 3 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $30-$48k) in the Southwest Region

#1

Central New Mexico Community College

Albuquerque, New Mexico

#1 in overall quality

$3,626 Average Net Price

$29,685 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Central New Mexico Community College. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. CNM is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 82 associates’s communications degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at CNM, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CNM is $3,626 for Southwest Region Associate Degree Communications students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Central New Mexico Community College Communication & Media Studies Report

#2

Tulsa Community College

Tulsa, Oklahoma

#2 in overall quality

$5,092 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Tulsa Community College. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. Tulsa Community College is a fairly large public school situated in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It awarded 14 associates’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

Tulsa Community College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $5,092 for Southwest Region Associate Degree Communications students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Tulsa Community College.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Tulsa Community College

#3

Cameron University

Lawton, Oklahoma

#3 in overall quality

$6,296 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Cameron University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Communications Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. Located in Lawton, Oklahoma, this small public school awarded 10 diplomas to qualified associates’s communications students in 2019-2020.

Cameron University also took the #3 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Cameron University is $6,296 for Southwest Region Associate Degree Communications students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Cameron University Communication & Media Studies Report

• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $30-$48k)

Notes and References

References

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to UNU-WIDER from Helsinki, Finland.

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