2022 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for General Education in Montana

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana” ranking is part of that endeavor.

General Education is the 35th most popular major in the country with 29,936 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, general education graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $47,138 and had an average of $29,674 in loans still to pay off.

Across Montana, there were 60 general education graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,250 and $23,604 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 49 general education graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,253 and $16,814 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in general education. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality general education programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the general education program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Education Schools for an Associate in Montana” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana.

Top 3 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for General Education in Montana

#1

The University of Montana - Western

Dillon, Montana

#1 in overall quality

$13,929 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend The University of Montana - Western. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana. Montana Western is a small school located in Dillon, Montana that handed out 26 associates’s education degrees in 2019-2020.

Montana Western not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best General Education Associate Degree Schools in Montana” list. It costs about $13,929 for montana associate degree education students per year to attend The University of Montana - Western.

Read full report on General Education at Montana Western

#2

Montana State University - Northern

Havre, Montana

#2 in overall quality

$13,174 Average Net Price

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana that were part of this year’s ranking, Montana State University - Northern landed the #2 spot on the list. Montana State University - Northern is located in Havre, Montana and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 15 associates’s education degrees to qualified students.

Montana State University - Northern also took the #2 spot in our “Best General Education Associate Degree Schools in Montana” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Montana State University - Northern is $13,174 for montana associate degree education students.

Read more about General Education at Montana State University - Northern

#3

Montana State University - Billings

Billings, Montana

#3 in overall quality

$13,844 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Montana State University - Billings. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Education Schools for an Associate in Montana. This small school is located in Billings, Montana, and it awarded 1 associates’s education degrees in 2019-2020.

Montana State University - Billings also made our “Best General Education Associate Degree Schools in Montana” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $13,844 for Montana Associate Degree Education students per year to attend Montana State University - Billings.

Read full report on General Education at Montana State University - Billings

• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for General Education in the Rocky Mountains Region
• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for General Education

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 KOKUYO.

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