by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 21,099 people earned their degree in public relations and advertising, making the major the 52nd most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, public relations and advertising graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $38,287 and had an average of $23,973 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Southwest region, there were 2,591 public relations and advertising graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,541 and $22,069 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 190 public relations and advertising graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,204 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region” ranking, we looked at 12 colleges that offer a degree in public relations and advertising. That schools that top this list have a program in public relations and advertising in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region master’s degree public relations students.
Out of the 12 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Dallas Baptist University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Dallas, Texas, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 21 degrees to qualified masters’s public relations students in 2020-2021.
Out of the 12 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Texas Tech University landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Lubbock, Texas, this large public school awarded 64 diplomas to qualified masters’s public relations students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Public Relations & Advertising at Texas Tech University
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Methodist University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region list. Southern Methodist University is located in Dallas, Texas and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 10 masters’s public relations degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, 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 90%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Texas Christian University. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region. Texas Christian University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Fort Worth, Texas. It awarded 7 masters’s public relations degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Texas at Austin. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region list. This large school is located in Austin, Texas, and it awarded 31 masters’s public relations degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%.
Read full report on Public Relations & Advertising at UT Austin
Arizona State University - Skysong landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region ranking. Arizona State University - Skysong is a large school located in Scottsdale, Arizona that handed out 21 masters’s public relations degrees in 2020-2021.
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 Arizona State University - Skysong Public Relations & Advertising Report
Texas A&M International University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #7. Texas A&M International University is located in Laredo, Texas and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s public relations degrees to qualified students.
Full Texas A&M International University Public Relations & Advertising Report
University of North Texas did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #8. Denton, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s public relations degrees to 7 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full University of North Texas Public Relations & Advertising Report
Arizona State University - Tempe did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #9. Tempe, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s public relations degrees to 12 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Public Relations & Advertising at ASU - Tempe
University of Houston came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region ranking. UH is a large public school situated in Houston, Texas. It awarded 6 masters’s public relations degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, 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 86%.
Full University of Houston Public Relations & Advertising Report
Texas A&M University - College Station ranked #11 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region list. College Station, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s public relations degrees to 8 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Texas A&M College Station Public Relations & Advertising Report
East Texas Baptist University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Public Relations Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #12. East Texas Baptist University is a small school located in Marshall, Texas that handed out 4 masters’s public relations degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Public Relations & Advertising at East Texas Baptist University
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
