[Communication & Media Studies](/majors/communication-journalism-media/communication-media-studies/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The schools below stand out for delivering a strong communication & media studies education at a price that pays off.
For its 2027 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 2 schools to find the best return on investment for communication & media studies students.
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If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the communication & media studies degrees they offer, see the list below.
For return on investment in communication & media studies, no school beat Delaware State University this year. Located in the city of Dover, Delaware State University is a moderately-sized public university. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $10,670, while out-of-state students pay about $20,634. Typical student debt for communication & media studies graduates is $26,000. Early-career communication & media studies graduates make about $30,098. That is a strong return on a $26,000 median debt. Roughly 47% of applicants are accepted.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at University Of Delaware earned it the #2 place for communication & media studies. Set in the suburb of Newark, University Of Delaware is a very large public institution. In-state tuition and fees average $16,810, while out-of-state students pay about $41,400. Communication & Media Studies graduates carry a median of $25,000 in student loans. Soon after graduation, communication & media studies degree recipients from University Of Delaware generally make around $41,897. Set against $25,000 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. Roughly 71% of applicants are accepted.
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2027 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 2 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 2 ranked schools only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
