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2024 Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

10 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
448 Bachelor's Degrees
$31,832 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your bachelor's degree in area studies, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #85 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

College Factual reviewed 10 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of area studies. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 448 bachelor's degrees in area studies during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Area Studies School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region Your choice of area studies for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we consider a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for area studies students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Area Studies Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region 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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Area Studies in the Great Lakes Region

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in area studies.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Area Studies

1
21 Annual Graduates
$32,123 Median Starting Salary
$20,850 Median Student Debt

Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in area studies needs to take a look at University of Wisconsin - Madison. UW - Madison is a fairly large public university located in the city of Madison.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the area studies program report average early career wages of $32,123.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Wisconsin - Madison

2
48 Annual Graduates
$19,348 Median Starting Salary
$16,984 Median Student Debt

Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in area studies has to look into University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a fairly large student population.

After graduation, area studies bachelor's recipients typically make around $19,348 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

3
17 Annual Graduates
$32,224 Median Starting Salary
$22,050 Median Student Debt

Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in area studies has to check out University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. UIUC is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Champaign.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the area studies program state that they receive average early career wages of $32,224.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

4
56 Annual Graduates
$40,022 Median Starting Salary
$20,552 Median Student Debt

It's hard to beat Miami University - Oxford if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in area studies. Located in the town of Oxford, Miami University - Oxford is a public university with a large student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the area studies major at Miami University - Oxford make $8,190 more than the average college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Miami University - Oxford

5
15 Annual Graduates

UChicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Chicago

6
Oberlin crest
Oberlin College
Oberlin, OH
41 Annual Graduates
$19,436 Median Starting Salary
$24,951 Median Student Debt

Oberlin is a small private not-for-profit college located in the town of Oberlin.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the area studies program earn an average of $19,436 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Oberlin College

7
14 Annual Graduates
$21,710 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Indiana University - Bloomington

8

Located in the city of Chicago, UIC is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the area studies program earn an average of $32,968 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Illinois at Chicago

9
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
11 Annual Graduates
$28,163 Median Starting Salary
$24,500 Median Student Debt

DePaul is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago.

Soon after graduating, area studies bachelor's recipients typically earn around $28,163 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from DePaul University

10

Located in the distant town of Adrian, Siena Heights University is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the area studies degree program at Siena Heights University make $18,538 more than the typical graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Siena Heights University

Best Area Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best area studies schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 261 103
Ohio 252 146
Illinois 241 86
Indiana 235 62
Wisconsin 213 51

View All Rankings >

One of 2 majors within the Area, Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies area of study, Area Studies has other similar majors worth exploring.

Area Studies Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
American U.S. Studies 95
East Asian Studies 84
Asian Studies 64
Latin American Studies 40
Area Studies, Other 27
Japanese Studies 25
German Studies 15
African Studies 14
Latin American & Caribbean Studies 11
Near & Middle Eastern Studies 10

Related Major Annual Graduates
Ethnic Studies 643
Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies (Other) 41

Notes and References

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