2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 6,820 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 106th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,734 and had an average of $23,024 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southwest region, there were 301 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,500 and $25,548 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 4 colleges that offer a degree in area studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent area studies 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 area studies program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region area studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k) in the Southwest Region

#1

Arizona State University - Tempe

Tempe, Arizona

#2 in overall quality

$7,044 Average Net Price

$46,397 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Arizona State University - Tempe. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. ASU - Tempe is a public institution located in Tempe, Arizona. The school has a large population, and it awarded 26 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

ASU - Tempe did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend ASU - Tempe is $7,044 for southwest region area studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on Area Studies at ASU - Tempe

#2

The University of Texas at Austin

Austin, Texas

#1 in overall quality

$12,203 Average Net Price

$49,643 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend The University of Texas at Austin. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. This large school is located in Austin, Texas, and it awarded 93 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

UT Austin not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend UT Austin is $12,203 for Southwest Region Area Studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Area Studies at The University of Texas at Austin

#3

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

#3 in overall quality

$10,562 Average Net Price

$44,160 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Arizona. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Tucson, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s area studies degrees to 61 students in 2019-2020.

University of Arizona also took the #3 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Arizona is $10,562 for southwest region area studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full University of Arizona Area Studies Report

#4

University of New Mexico - Main Campus

Albuquerque, New Mexico

#4 in overall quality

$13,242 Average Net Price

$41,938 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of New Mexico - Main Campus landed the #4 spot on the list. This large school is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it awarded 32 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

UNM also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend UNM is $13,242 for Southwest Region Area Studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full UNM Area Studies Report

• Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k)

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 Karl Udo Gerth.

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