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2022 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies in the Plains States Region

6 Ranked Colleges
35 Degrees Awarded
$22,600 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region” ranking.

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 Plains States region, there were 3,723 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,583 and $25,858 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 35 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $72,701 and $106,703 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region” ranking, we looked at 6 colleges that offer a degree in communication and media studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great communication and media studies programs and 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.

More Ways to Rank Communication & Media Studies Schools

The communications school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region”.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons 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 Doctorate in the Plains States Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region.

Top 7 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies in the Plains States Region

#4 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, North Dakota State University - Main Campus landed the #1 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Fargo, North Dakota, and it awarded 6 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

North Dakota State University also took the #4 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at North Dakota State University are $11,589, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full North Dakota State University Communication & Media Studies Report

#2

University of Kansas

Lawrence, Kansas
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Kansas. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region list. Located in Lawrence, Kansas, this large public school awarded 14 degrees to qualified doctorate’s communications students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at KU, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Kansas are $25,007.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of Kansas

#3 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Nebraska - Lincoln landed the #3 spot on the list. This large school is located in Lincoln, Nebraska, and it awarded 5 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

UNL also took the #3 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Nebraska - Lincoln are $19,513.

Full University of Nebraska - Lincoln Communication & Media Studies Report

#3

University of North Dakota

Grand Forks, North Dakota
#7 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Dakota. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region list. UND is a public institution located in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UND not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of North Dakota are $18,326.

Full University of North Dakota Communication & Media Studies Report

#4

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, Minnesota
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region. UMN Twin Cities is a large public school situated in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It awarded 2 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

UMN Twin Cities did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities are $28,845.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

#5

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa
#5 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Iowa. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region. Iowa is a public institution located in Iowa City, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 3 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Iowa are $27,613, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full Iowa Communication & Media Studies Report

With a ranking of #6, University of Missouri - Columbia did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Doctorate in the Plains States Region list. Mizzou is a large school located in Columbia, Missouri that handed out 4 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.

Mizzou also took the #6 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Missouri - Columbia are $27,193, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Mizzou

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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.

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