by our College Data Analytics Team
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 “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate” ranking - to help you make that decision.
With 327,871 degrees handed out in 2020-2021, education is the 4th most popular major in the United States. In 2019-2020, education graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $46,202 and had an average of $24,437 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Plains States region, there were 32,968 education graduates with average earnings and debt of $43,320 and $27,260 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,965 education graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,829 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate” ranking, we looked at 51 colleges that offer a degree in education. To top this list, a school must have a successful education program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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 “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate” list to help you make the college decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools 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 plains states region doctor’s degree education students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Capella University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. Capella University is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 423 doctorate’s education degrees to qualified students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Walden University. The school came in at #2 for the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate. Located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this large private for-profit school awarded 361 degrees to qualified doctorate’s education students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.7% 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 Maryville University of Saint Louis. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. Maryville University of Saint Louis is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 79 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Missouri - Columbia. The school came in at #4 for the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate. Mizzou is a large public school situated in Columbia, Missouri. It awarded 74 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend William Woods University. The school came in at #5 for the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate. This small school is located in Fulton, Missouri, and it awarded 68 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate 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.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Creighton University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. Creighton is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Omaha, Nebraska. It awarded 68 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.
University of Nebraska - Lincoln landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. UNL is a large public school situated in Lincoln, Nebraska. It awarded 64 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% 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%.
Saint Louis University ranked #8 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. Saint Louis University is a fairly large school located in Saint Louis, Missouri that handed out 58 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%. 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.
Lindenwood University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. Lindenwood University is located in Saint Charles, Missouri and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 53 doctorate’s education degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
A T Still University of Health Sciences ranked #10 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. A T Still University of Health Sciences is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Kirksville, Missouri. It awarded 51 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Education at A T Still University of Health Sciences
With a ranking of #11, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. Minneapolis, Minnesota is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s education degrees to 48 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Education at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
University of Kansas came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. University of Kansas is a large school located in Lawrence, Kansas that handed out 45 doctorate’s education degrees 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 Missouri - St Louis landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. Located in Saint Louis, Missouri, this fairly large public school handed out 45 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s education students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. This small school is located in Omaha, Nebraska, and it awarded 38 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #14, Kansas State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. This large school is located in Manhattan, Kansas, and it awarded 38 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #16, University of Iowa did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. University of Iowa is a large school located in Iowa City, Iowa that handed out 37 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% 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 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Baker University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. This small school is located in Baldwin City, Kansas, and it awarded 26 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
University of St Thomas Minnesota ranked #18 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. UST MN is a medium-sized school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota that handed out 25 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #19, Saint Cloud State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. St. Cloud State University is located in Saint Cloud, Minnesota and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 24 doctorate’s education degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of North Dakota came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. University of North Dakota is a public institution located in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 23 doctorate’s 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%.
University of South Dakota ranked #20 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. University of South Dakota is a public institution located in Vermillion, South Dakota. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 23 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Iowa State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking, coming in at #22. Located in Ames, Iowa, this large public school handed out 21 degrees to qualified doctorate’s education students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, 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 89%.
University of Nebraska at Omaha did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking, coming in at #23. This fairly large school is located in Omaha, Nebraska, and it awarded 20 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Drake University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking, coming in at #24. Des Moines, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s education degrees to 19 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
With a ranking of #24, Bethel University Minnesota did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate list. Located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 19 degrees to qualified doctorate’s education students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Education at Bethel University Minnesota
Missouri Baptist University landed the #24 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Plains States Region for a Doctorate ranking. This small school is located in Saint Louis, Missouri, and it awarded 19 doctorate’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
