by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 6,966 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 115th most popular in the United States. 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 the Great Lakes region, there were 808 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,342 and $21,486 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 27 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $74,305 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, we looked at 8 colleges that offer a degree in area studies. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in area studies.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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 “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region”.
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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region doctor’s degree area studies students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Bowling Green State University - Main Campus. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region. Located in Bowling Green, Ohio, this fairly large public school handed out 7 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s area studies students in 2020-2021.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, this large public school awarded 7 degrees to qualified doctorate’s area studies students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Area Studies at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Indiana University - Bloomington. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region. Bloomington, Indiana is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 4 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Purdue University - Main Campus. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region. Purdue is located in West Lafayette, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 4 doctorate’s area studies degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, this large public school handed out 2 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s area studies students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.2% 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%.
With a ranking of #6, University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region list. UIC is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 1 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Area Studies at University of Illinois at Chicago
With a ranking of #7, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region list. UIUC is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Area Studies at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Madison, Wisconsin is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 1 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
