2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

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. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 70 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,078 and $37,227 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer a degree in area studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great area studies programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the area studies program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools

The area studies school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k”.

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 when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 3 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $30-$48k) in the Southwest Region

#1

The University of Texas at Austin

Austin, Texas

#1 in overall quality

$22,886 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$44,189 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Texas at Austin. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. The University of Texas at Austin is a large public school situated in Austin, Texas. It awarded 23 masters’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southwest region master’s degree area studies students whose families make $30-$48k list, UT Austin has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at The University of Texas at Austin are $22,886, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Area Studies at UT Austin

#2

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

#2 in overall quality

$33,399 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$32,569 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Arizona. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. University of Arizona is a large public school situated in Tucson, Arizona. It awarded 17 masters’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

University of Arizona also made our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #2. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Arizona are $33,399, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of Arizona

#3

University of New Mexico - Main Campus

Albuquerque, New Mexico

$19,890 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of New Mexico - Main Campus. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. UNM is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 6 masters’s area studies degrees to qualified students.

UNM did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #0 on our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UNM are $19,890.

Full UNM Area Studies Report

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $30-$48k)

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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