Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies in Washington (With Aid)

5 Ranked Colleges
246 Degrees Awarded
$13,600 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor's in Washington For Those Getting Aid

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. 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 for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Area Studies is the 106th most popular major in the country with 6,820 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. 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 Washington, there were 282 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,350 and $23,411 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 246 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,202 and $21,977 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 5 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.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the area studies 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 Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for washington bachelor’s degree area studies students with aid.

Top 5 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies in Washington (With Aid)

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid list. UW Seattle is a public institution located in Seattle, Washington. The school has a large population, and it awarded 193 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UW Seattle also made our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus is $13,297 for washington bachelor’s degree area studies students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full UW Seattle Area Studies Report

#2

Western Washington University

Bellingham, Washington

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Western Washington University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid. WWU is a public institution located in Bellingham, Washington. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

WWU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list. It costs about $16,529 for washington bachelor’s degree area studies students with aid per year to attend Western Washington University.

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%.

Full Western Washington University Area Studies Report

#3

Washington State University

Pullman, Washington
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Washington State University landed the #3 spot on the list. Washington State University is located in Pullman, Washington and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2 bachelors’s area studies degrees to qualified students.

Wazzu also took the #3 spot in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. It costs about $16,358 for washington bachelor’s degree area studies students with aid per year to attend Washington State University.

The low student loan default rate of 4.6% 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 full report on Area Studies at Washington State University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Washington - Bothell Campus. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid list. University of Washington - Bothell Campus is located in Bothell, Washington and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 6 bachelors’s area studies degrees to qualified students.

UW Bothell also took the #5 spot in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Washington - Bothell Campus is $11,060 for washington bachelor’s degree area studies students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of Washington - Bothell Campus

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Washington - Tacoma Campus landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Tacoma, Washington, this medium-sized public school awarded 5 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s area studies students in 2019-2020.

UW Tacoma also made our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend University of Washington - Tacoma Campus is $10,817 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Area Studies students with aid.

The low 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%.

Full University of Washington - Tacoma Campus Area Studies Report

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

Featured Political and Social Sciences Schools

Find Schools Near You