2023 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in North Carolina

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Area Studies is the 115th most popular major in the country with 6,966 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $33,127 and had an average of $20,927 in loans still to pay off.

Across North Carolina, there were 332 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,832 and $14,009 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s 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.

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. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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 in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 3 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in North Carolina

1

Duke University
Durham, North Carolina

#1 in overall quality

$7,160 Average Net Price

$71,290 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Duke University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k. Duke is a private not-for-profit institution located in Durham, North Carolina. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 55 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Duke also took the #1 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Duke University is $7,160 for North Carolina Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read more about Area Studies at Duke University

2

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina

#2 in overall quality

$11,619 Average Net Price

$51,808 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k list. UNC Chapel Hill is a large public school situated in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It awarded 221 ’s area studies degrees in 2020-2021.

UNC Chapel Hill did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in North Carolina” list. It costs about $11,619 for North Carolina Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 more about Area Studies at UNC Chapel Hill

3

University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Charlotte, North Carolina

#3 in overall quality

$16,938 Average Net Price

$46,346 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Carolina at Charlotte. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Area Studies Schools in North Carolina For Those Making $48-$75k list. Charlotte, North Carolina is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s area studies degrees to 19 students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNC Charlotte, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of North Carolina at Charlotte is $16,938 for north carolina area studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of North Carolina at Charlotte

• Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in the Southeast Region
• Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k)

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.