2022 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies in Massachusetts (With Aid)
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. 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 Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” 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 Massachusetts, there were 469 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,600 and $18,123 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 13 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. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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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 in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid”.
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. 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 in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid
The colleges and universities below are the best for massachusetts area studies students with aid.
Top 13 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies in Massachusetts (With Aid)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Harvard University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 91 degrees to qualified ’s area studies students in 2019-2020.
Harvard not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” list. It costs about $15,386 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid per year to attend Harvard University.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Amherst College. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid. Amherst College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Amherst, Massachusetts. The school has a small population, and it awarded 28 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Amherst, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. It costs about $18,524 for massachusetts area studies students with aid per year to attend Amherst College.
The low student loan default rate of 3.8% 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 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Wellesley College landed the #3 spot on the list. Wellesley is located in Wellesley, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 41 ’s area studies degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our massachusetts area studies students with aid list, Wellesley has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Wellesley College is $22,087 for massachusetts area studies students with aid.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Williams College landed the #4 spot on the list. This small school is located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, and it awarded 21 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Williams, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. It costs about $19,480 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid per year to attend Williams.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Massachusetts - Boston landed the #5 spot on the list. University of Massachusetts - Boston is a fairly large school located in Boston, Massachusetts that handed out 22 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UMass Boston, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UMass Boston is $18,340 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid.
University of Massachusetts Amherst came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking. UMass Amherst is a large school located in Amherst, Massachusetts that handed out 14 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our massachusetts area studies students with aid list, UMass Amherst has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Massachusetts Amherst is $22,501 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The low student loan default rate of 2.8% 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 Massachusetts Amherst Area Studies Report
Smith College landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking. Smith College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Northampton, Massachusetts. It awarded 40 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
Smith also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” list, coming in at #7. The yearly cost to attend Smith is $28,305 for massachusetts area studies students with aid.
The low student loan default rate of 1.1% 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 student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Tufts University landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Medford, Massachusetts, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 30 diplomas to qualified ’s area studies students in 2019-2020.
Tufts also took the #5 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Tufts University is $30,744 for massachusetts area studies students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 1.2% 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%. The 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.
Boston University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking. Boston U is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 29 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
Boston U also took the #8 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Boston University is $30,259 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low 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%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Wheaton College Massachusetts ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid list. Wheaton College Massachusetts is a small school located in Norton, Massachusetts that handed out 9 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our massachusetts area studies students with aid list, Wheaton College Massachusetts has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Wheaton College Massachusetts is $26,809 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, 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 students.
Mount Holyoke College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking. This small school is located in South Hadley, Massachusetts, and it awarded 16 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.
Mt. Holyoke not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” list. The yearly cost to attend Mount Holyoke College is $27,149 for Massachusetts Area Studies students with aid.
The impressive 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. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Simmons University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid list. Simmons is located in Boston, Massachusetts and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2 ’s area studies degrees to qualified students.
Simmons also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” list, coming in at #13. It costs about $30,008 for massachusetts area studies students with aid per year to attend Simmons.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Brandeis University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #13. Brandeis University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Waltham, Massachusetts. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 79 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Brandeis also took the #6 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Massachusetts” ranking. It costs about $31,165 for massachusetts area studies students with aid per year to attend Brandeis.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.
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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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