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2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region

24 Ranked Colleges
1,631 Degrees Awarded
$19,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor's in the Plains States Region

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Journalism is the 62nd most popular major in the country with 14,528 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, journalism graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $31,042 and had an average of $24,628 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 1,830 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,850 and $22,444 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,631 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,786 and $25,576 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” ranking looked at 24 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in journalism. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent journalism programs, but they also cost less that 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 journalism program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Journalism Schools

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 Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest 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 Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

Top 24 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Journalism in the Plains States Region

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend North Dakota State University - Main Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. North Dakota State University is a fairly large public school situated in Fargo, North Dakota. It awarded 8 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

North Dakota State University also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #13. It costs about $16,584 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students per year to attend North Dakota State University.

The low student loan default rate of 3.1% 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 more about Journalism at North Dakota State University - Main Campus

#2

South Dakota State University

Brookings, South Dakota

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend South Dakota State University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region. South Dakota State University is a fairly large school located in Brookings, South Dakota that handed out 11 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at South Dakota State, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $19,252 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students per year to attend South Dakota State.

The low student loan default rate of 3.8% 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%.

Read more about Journalism at South Dakota State

#12 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Minnesota - Duluth. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region. University of Minnesota - Duluth is located in Duluth, Minnesota and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 20 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UMN Duluth, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UMN Duluth is $17,067 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

The low student loan default rate of 3.1% 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 more about Journalism at UMN Duluth

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Nebraska at Kearney. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. UNK is located in Kearney, Nebraska and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 24 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNK, the school also landed the #16 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Nebraska at Kearney is $16,017 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at UNK

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Iowa State University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Located in Ames, Iowa, this large public school awarded 77 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

Iowa State also took the #6 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $15,496 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students per year to attend Iowa State University.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, 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 Journalism at Iowa State

#6

University of Kansas

Lawrence, Kansas

University of Kansas came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of Kansas is located in Lawrence, Kansas and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 243 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

KU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for KU is $18,918 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full University of Kansas Journalism Report

University of Missouri - Columbia ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Mizzou is located in Columbia, Missouri and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 451 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students list, Mizzou has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $16,001 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students per year to attend Mizzou.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Mizzou Journalism Report

Minnesota State University - Moorhead ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Moorhead, Minnesota is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at MSU Moorhead, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Minnesota State University - Moorhead is $16,893 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

The low 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%.

Read full report on Journalism at Minnesota State University - Moorhead

Missouri State University - Springfield landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in Springfield, Missouri, this large public school awarded 13 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

Missouri State also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #20. The estimated yearly cost for Missouri State is $16,725 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

Read more about Journalism at Missouri State University - Springfield

#10

Kansas State University

Manhattan, Kansas

Kansas State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #10. Kansas State University is a large public school situated in Manhattan, Kansas. It awarded 109 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

K -State also took the #11 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Kansas State University is $18,285 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Kansas State University Journalism Report

#11

Lindenwood University

Saint Charles, Missouri
#22 in overall quality

Lindenwood University landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Lindenwood University is located in Saint Charles, Missouri and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 5 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Lindenwood University, the school also landed the #22 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Lindenwood University is $17,491 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Journalism at Lindenwood University

University of Nebraska at Omaha came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of Nebraska at Omaha is a fairly large public school situated in Omaha, Nebraska. It awarded 6 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

UNOMAHA also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #18. The estimated yearly cost for University of Nebraska at Omaha is $14,040 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

Read full report on Journalism at UNOMAHA

#13

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, Minnesota

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. This large school is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and it awarded 277 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

UMN Twin Cities also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend UMN Twin Cities is $17,740 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Journalism at UMN Twin Cities

University of Nebraska - Lincoln did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #14. University of Nebraska - Lincoln is a large school located in Lincoln, Nebraska that handed out 88 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

UNL not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The yearly cost to attend UNL is $17,208 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.2%, 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 85%.

Full University of Nebraska - Lincoln Journalism Report

#15

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa

University of Iowa landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Iowa is located in Iowa City, Iowa and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 146 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Iowa is $19,145 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Iowa Journalism Report

#16

Wichita State University

Wichita, Kansas
#23 in overall quality

Wichita State University landed the #16 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Wichita State University is a fairly large public school situated in Wichita, Kansas. It awarded 8 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

WSU also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #23. The yearly cost to attend Wichita State University is $14,382 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

Full Wichita State University Journalism Report

#17

Evangel University

Springfield, Missouri
#21 in overall quality

With a ranking of #17, Evangel University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Evangel University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Springfield, Missouri. It awarded 8 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Evangel, the school also landed the #21 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $22,837 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students per year to attend Evangel University.

The student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at Evangel University

#18

Saint Ambrose University

Davenport, Iowa
#17 in overall quality

With a ranking of #18, Saint Ambrose University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Davenport, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 4 students in 2019-2020.

St. Ambrose University also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #17. The estimated yearly cost for St. Ambrose University is $26,204 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

Full Saint Ambrose University Journalism Report

#19

Drury University

Springfield, Missouri
#24 in overall quality

Drury University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. This small school is located in Springfield, Missouri, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

Drury University also took the #24 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $18,419 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students per year to attend Drury University.

Read more about Journalism at Drury University

#20

Concordia College at Moorhead

Moorhead, Minnesota
#10 in overall quality

Concordia College at Moorhead did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #20. Concordia College at Moorhead is a small school located in Moorhead, Minnesota that handed out 8 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

Concordia College Moorhead did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $23,029 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students per year to attend Concordia College Moorhead.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at Concordia College Moorhead

#21

Bethel University Minnesota

Saint Paul, Minnesota
#14 in overall quality

Bethel University Minnesota came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Bethel University Minnesota is a small school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota that handed out 5 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Bethel University Minnesota, the school also landed the #14 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Bethel University Minnesota is $25,191 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at Bethel University Minnesota

#22

Drake University

Des Moines, Iowa

With a ranking of #22, Drake University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. This small school is located in Des Moines, Iowa, and it awarded 31 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

Drake also took the #5 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Drake is $29,432 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. 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 Drake Journalism Report

#23

Creighton University

Omaha, Nebraska

Creighton University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #23. This medium-sized school is located in Omaha, Nebraska, and it awarded 27 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students list, Creighton has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Creighton University is $31,400 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Journalism at Creighton

#24

University of St Thomas Minnesota

Saint Paul, Minnesota
#7 in overall quality

University of St Thomas Minnesota came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of St Thomas Minnesota is a medium-sized school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota that handed out 1 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

UST MN not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of St Thomas Minnesota is $29,155 for plains states region bachelor’s degree journalism students.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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 more about Journalism at UST MN

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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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Jfurrer.

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