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2024 Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Southwest Region

57 Colleges in the Southwest Region
6,936 Communications Degrees Awarded
$33,822 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #10 in popularity, communication & media studies is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 57 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 6,936 degrees in communication & media studies during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Communication & Media Studies School

Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Southwest Region The communications program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Communication & Media Studies rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for communication & media studies schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Communication & Media Studies Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Communications
Bachelor's Degrees in Communications
Master's Degrees in Communications
Doctor's Degrees in Communications

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Southwest Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Communication & Media Studies in the Southwest Region

The schools below may not offer all types of communications degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Southwest Region Schools in Communications

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
262 Communications Degrees Awarded
$46,014 Median Starting Salary

The University of Texas at Austin is a good option for students pursuing a degree in communication & media studies. Located in the city of Austin, UT Austin is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #36 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UT Austin is a great university overall.

There were about 262 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UT Austin in the most recent data year. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from The University of Texas at Austin receive an earnings boost of about $12,192 over the typical income of communication & media studies graduates.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from The University of Texas at Austin

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
471 Communications Degrees Awarded
19.1% Growth in Graduates

Texas A&M University - College Station is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in communication & media studies. Located in the midsize city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #44 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Texas A&M College Station is a great university overall.

There were about 471 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Texas A&M College Station in the most recent year we have data available. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Texas A&M University - College Station get an earnings boost of about $5,110 over the average earnings of communication & media studies majors.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Texas A&M University - College Station

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
175 Communications Degrees Awarded
9.1% Growth in Graduates

It's difficult to beat Texas Christian University if you want to pursue a degree in communication & media studies. Located in the city of Fort Worth, TCU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #80 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means TCU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 175 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at TCU in the most recent year we have data available. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from Texas Christian University receive $8,660 more than the standard communications graduate.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Texas Christian University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
308 Communications Degrees Awarded
7.8% Growth in Graduates

University of Arizona is a wonderful option for students pursuing a degree in communication & media studies. Located in the large city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #133 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means University of Arizona is a great university overall.

There were roughly 308 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at University of Arizona in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the communication & media studies degree program at University of Arizona get $7,467 more than the typical college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of Arizona

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
196 Communications Degrees Awarded
$36,068 Median Starting Salary

Baylor is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Waco. A Best Colleges rank of #123 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Baylor is a great university overall.

There were roughly 196 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Baylor in the most recent data year. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from Baylor University make $2,246 more than the average communications student.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Baylor University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
483 Communications Degrees Awarded
2.1% Growth in Graduates

ASU - Tempe is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Tempe. A Best Colleges rank of #119 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means ASU - Tempe is a great university overall.

There were roughly 483 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Tempe in the most recent year we have data available. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from Arizona State University - Tempe make $5,841 more than the average communications student.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Arizona State University - Tempe

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
41 Communications Degrees Awarded
29.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of Dallas, SMU is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #73 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SMU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 41 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at SMU in the most recent data year. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Southern Methodist University receive an earnings boost of about $5,174 over the typical income of communication & media studies majors.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Southern Methodist University

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
316 Communications Degrees Awarded
53.5% Growth in Graduates

Texas Tech is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Lubbock. A Best Colleges rank of #168 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Texas Tech is a great university overall.

There were approximately 316 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Texas Tech in the most recent year we have data available. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Texas Tech University get an earnings boost of around $4,464 over the typical earnings of communication & media studies graduates.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Texas Tech University

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
101 Communications Degrees Awarded
$38,091 Median Starting Salary

Located in the medium-sized suburb of Norman, University of Oklahoma is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #140 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means University of Oklahoma is a great university overall.

There were about 101 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at University of Oklahoma in the most recent data year. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from University of Oklahoma Norman Campus receive $4,269 more than the typical communications student.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of Oklahoma Norman Campus

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
712 Communications Degrees Awarded
17.4% Growth in Graduates

Located in the medium-sized city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 8th out of 26 colleges for overall quality in the state of Arizona.

There were about 712 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Skysong in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the communication & media studies degree program at Arizona State University - Skysong get $5,841 above the typical graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Arizona State University - Skysong

Best Communication & Media Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best communication & media studies colleges for a specific state in the Southwest Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Texas 317 4,069
Arizona 287 2,235
Oklahoma 257 325
New Mexico 219 129

View All Rankings >

Communication & Media Studies is one of 5 different types of Communication & Journalism programs to choose from.

Communications Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Speech Communication 3,335
Communications 2,479
Communication & Media Studies 1,046
Other Communication & Media Studies 76

View All Communications Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Communications

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Relations & Advertising 2,591
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 2,247
Journalism 1,758
Communication & Journalism (Other) 37
Publishing 5

View All Communications Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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