by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major” ranking - to help you make that decision.
Communication & Media Studies is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 10th of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 66,787 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2019-2020, communication and media studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $34,115 and had an average of $25,414 in loans still to pay off.
At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 425 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,260 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major” ranking, we looked at 79 colleges that offer a degree in communication and media studies. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their communication and media studies program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for doctor’s degree communications students.
Out of the 79 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Regent University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 14 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s communications students in 2020-2021.
Out of the 79 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus landed the #2 spot on the list. This medium-sized school is located in Indiana, Pennsylvania, and it awarded 7 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Out of the 79 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Howard University landed the #3 spot on the list. Howard University is located in Washington, District of Columbia and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 6 doctorate’s communications degrees to qualified students.
With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Out of the 79 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Oregon landed the #4 spot on the list. UO is a large school located in Eugene, Oregon that handed out 13 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern Mississippi. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. Southern Miss is a fairly large public school situated in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It awarded 7 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of Southern Mississippi
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Troy, New York, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #7, Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. SIUC is located in Carbondale, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 5 doctorate’s communications degrees to qualified students.
With a ranking of #8, Michigan State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. Michigan State University is a public institution located in East Lansing, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 19 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Bowling Green State University - Main Campus ranked #9 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. Bowling Green State University - Main Campus is located in Bowling Green, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 6 doctorate’s communications degrees to qualified students.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus
The University of Alabama came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. Located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, this large public school handed out 12 degrees to qualified doctorate’s communications students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.0% 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 Communication & Media Studies at The University of Alabama
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking, coming in at #11. University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee is a large public school situated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It awarded 7 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
University of Pennsylvania came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. This large school is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and it awarded 10 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
University of Southern California ranked #13 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 18 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s communications students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, 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 undergraduate students. 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.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of Southern California
University of Denver ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. DU is located in Denver, Colorado and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 5 doctorate’s communications degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Denver Communication & Media Studies Report
With a ranking of #15, Ohio University - Athens Campus did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. Ohio University - Athens Campus is a large public school situated in Athens, Ohio. It awarded 10 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at OHIO Athens
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking, coming in at #16. This large school is located in Norman, Oklahoma, and it awarded 7 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of Oklahoma Norman Campus
Texas Tech University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. Texas Tech is a large school located in Lubbock, Texas that handed out 9 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.5% 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 Texas Tech University Communication & Media Studies Report
University of Colorado Boulder landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. University of Colorado Boulder is a large school located in Boulder, Colorado that handed out 9 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. This large school is located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and it awarded 9 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at UNC Chapel Hill
With a ranking of #20, University of North Dakota did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. UND is a fairly large school located in Grand Forks, North Dakota that handed out 3 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of North Dakota
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking, coming in at #21. Louisiana State University is a large school located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana that handed out 6 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.0% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Louisiana State University Communication & Media Studies Report
American University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. Located in Washington, District of Columbia, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 4 degrees to qualified doctorate’s communications students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The undergrad 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 The American University
University of Kentucky ranked #23 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major list. Lexington, Kentucky is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s communications degrees to 7 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad 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%.
University of Massachusetts Amherst landed the #24 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking. UMass Amherst is a large school located in Amherst, Massachusetts that handed out 8 doctorate’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The low undergrad 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%.
Full University of Massachusetts Amherst Communication & Media Studies Report
Temple University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Communications Major ranking, coming in at #25. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this large public school handed out 8 degrees to qualified doctorate’s communications students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
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