Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Communication & Media Studies

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid

82 Ranked Colleges
9,692 Degrees Awarded
$10,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor's in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Communication & Media Studies is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 9th of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 68,079 degrees were awarded to students with this major. 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 Far Western US region, there were 15,759 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,204 and $21,798 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 9,692 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,083 and $22,209 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 82 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in communication and media studies. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality communication and media studies programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the communication and media studies program at the school. 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 a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to 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 a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies in the Far Western US Region (With Aid)

Out of the 82 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Seattle, Washington, and it awarded 463 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

UW Seattle also made our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $13,297 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid per year to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full UW Seattle Communication & Media Studies Report

Out of the 82 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Los Angeles landed the #2 spot on the list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 210 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Cal State LA is $2,768 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Cal State LA Communication & Media Studies Report

Out of the 82 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fullerton landed the #3 spot on the list. Cal State Fullerton is a public institution located in Fullerton, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 730 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Cal State Fullerton also made our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #20. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State Fullerton is $7,991 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Cal State Fullerton Communication & Media Studies Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Dominguez Hills. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid. California State University - Dominguez Hills is a public institution located in Carson, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 64 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for CSUDH is $4,215 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full CSUDH Communication & Media Studies Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Northridge. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid. California State University - Northridge is a large public school situated in Northridge, California. It awarded 369 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend CSUN is $8,414 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.0% 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%.

Full CSUN Communication & Media Studies Report

California State University - Long Beach came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Long Beach, California, this large public school handed out 365 degrees to qualified bachelors’s communications students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid list, CSULB has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $9,622 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid per year to attend California State University - Long Beach.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, 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 89%.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at CSULB

California State University - Fresno came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. California State University - Fresno is a large public school situated in Fresno, California. It awarded 102 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $5,464 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid per year to attend Fresno State.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, 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 87%.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at Fresno State

University of California - Berkeley came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s communications degrees to 284 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $15,329 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid per year to attend UC Berkeley.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at UC Berkeley

#9

University of California - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California

University of California - Santa Barbara ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. UCSB is a large public school situated in Santa Barbara, California. It awarded 517 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

UCSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Santa Barbara is $15,884 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full UCSB Communication & Media Studies Report

With a ranking of #10, California State University - Bakersfield did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in Bakersfield, California, and it awarded 98 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $5,318 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid per year to attend California State University - Bakersfield.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at California State University - Bakersfield

California State University - Stanislaus came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. California State University - Stanislaus is a fairly large school located in Turlock, California that handed out 76 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Stan State is $6,019 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Stan State

California State University - Sacramento did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #12. This large school is located in Sacramento, California, and it awarded 531 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

Sac State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #25 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Sacramento is $9,979 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The low 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 full report on Communication & Media Studies at Sac State

University of California - Davis landed the #13 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. UC Davis is a public institution located in Davis, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 323 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid list, UC Davis has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Davis is $14,669 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 1.9% 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 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full UC Davis Communication & Media Studies Report

University of California - San Diego came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. La Jolla, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s communications degrees to 239 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UCSD, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $14,232 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid per year to attend University of California - San Diego.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at University of California - San Diego

With a ranking of #15, University of Nevada - Las Vegas did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. University of Nevada - Las Vegas is located in Las Vegas, Nevada and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 237 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.

The estimated yearly cost for University of Nevada - Las Vegas is $11,424 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at UNLV

#16

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#3 in overall quality

Stanford University came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Stanford is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 19 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid list, Stanford has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Stanford is $11,496 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, 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 86%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Stanford University

#17

California State University - San Bernardino

San Bernardino, California

California State University - San Bernardino ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in San Bernardino, California, and it awarded 206 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for CSUSB is $7,342 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at California State University - San Bernardino

#18

San Diego State University

San Diego, California

San Diego State University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. San Diego State University is a large school located in San Diego, California that handed out 190 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #22 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Diego State University is $14,788 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.8% 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 89%.

Full SDSU Communication & Media Studies Report

With a ranking of #19, California State University - San Marcos did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. CSUSM is a fairly large school located in San Marcos, California that handed out 278 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for CSUSM is $13,399 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 4.2% 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 full report on Communication & Media Studies at California State University - San Marcos

#20

San Jose State University

San Jose, California

With a ranking of #20, San Jose State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. Located in San Jose, California, this large public school awarded 273 degrees to qualified bachelors’s communications students in 2019-2020.

San Jose State also took the #13 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $14,928 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid per year to attend San Jose State University.

The low student loan default rate of 3.7% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at San Jose State University

#21

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California

San Francisco State University ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. San Francisco State University is a large school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 406 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SFSU, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $15,113 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid per year to attend San Francisco State University.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at SFSU

With a ranking of #22, California State University - East Bay did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - East Bay is a fairly large public school situated in Hayward, California. It awarded 160 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $11,116 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid per year to attend Cal State East Bay.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Cal State East Bay

California State Polytechnic University - Pomona did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #23. Located in Pomona, California, this large public school awarded 152 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s communications students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is $12,734 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at Cal Poly Pomona

#24

Eastern Washington University

Cheney, Washington

Eastern Washington University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Eastern Washington University is located in Cheney, Washington and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 97 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.

The estimated yearly cost for Eastern Washington University is $12,607 for far western us region bachelor’s degree communications students with aid.

Full EWU Communication & Media Studies Report

California State University - Channel Islands landed the #25 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Camarillo, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s communications degrees to 122 students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Channel Islands is $13,558 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Communications students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.1% 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 full report on Communication & Media Studies at CSUCI

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

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

Featured Communications / Public Relations Schools

Find Schools Near You