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2024 Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools

126 Colleges in the United States
12,609 Bachelor's Degrees
$29,731 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your bachelor's degree in human development & family studies, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #39 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 126 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 12,609 bachelor's degrees in human development & family studies to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Human Development & Family Studies School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools The human development bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

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

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

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 human development & family studies students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Human Development & Family Studies Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Human Development Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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 Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Human Development & Family Studies in the United States

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in human development & family studies. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

18 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in Human Development

1
61 Annual Graduates
$15,500 Median Student Debt

It's hard to beat Cornell University if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in human development & family studies. Located in the small city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Cornell University

2
197 Annual Graduates
$29,244 Median Starting Salary
$21,250 Median Student Debt

It is difficult to beat University of Wisconsin - Madison if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in human development & family studies. UW - Madison is a very large public university located in the large city of Madison.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the human development program report average early career wages of $29,244.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from University of Wisconsin - Madison

3
170 Annual Graduates
$32,092 Median Starting Salary
$23,059 Median Student Debt

University of Connecticut is a good decision for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in human development & family studies. UCONN is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Storrs.

Bachelor's recipients from the human development & family studies program at University of Connecticut get $2,361 above the standard graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from University of Connecticut

4
Tufts crest
Tufts University
Medford, MA
34 Annual Graduates
$35,452 Median Starting Salary
$16,170 Median Student Debt

Tufts University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in human development & family studies. Located in the large suburb of Medford, Tufts is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Those human development & family studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Tufts University earn $5,721 more than the standard human development grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Tufts University

5
183 Annual Graduates
$29,842 Median Starting Salary
$23,466 Median Student Debt

UGA is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Athens.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the human development program make an average of $29,842 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from University of Georgia

6
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA
221 Annual Graduates
$28,797 Median Starting Salary
$21,500 Median Student Debt

Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Blacksburg.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the human development program make an average of $28,797 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Virginia Tech

7
190 Annual Graduates
$34,566 Median Starting Salary
$24,019 Median Student Debt

Wazzu is a very large public university located in the town of Pullman.

Those human development & family studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Washington State University make $4,835 more than the average human development grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Washington State University

8
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
117 Annual Graduates
$32,168 Median Starting Salary
$29,750 Median Student Debt

Michigan State is a very large public university located in the city of East Lansing.

Those human development & family studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Michigan State University make $2,437 more than the standard human development grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Michigan State University

9
108 Annual Graduates
$33,385 Median Starting Salary
$19,533 Median Student Debt

Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public university with a very large student population.

Human Development & Family Studies bachelor's degree recipients from University of Maryland - College Park receive an earnings boost of approximately $3,654 above the average earnings of human development & family studies majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from University of Maryland - College Park

10
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
105 Annual Graduates
$30,613 Median Starting Salary
$17,296 Median Student Debt

UF is a very large public university located in the city of Gainesville.

Soon after graduating, human development bachelor's recipients usually make around $30,613 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from University of Florida

11
205 Annual Graduates
$32,838 Median Starting Salary
$23,250 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Lubbock, Texas Tech is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those human development & family studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Texas Tech University earn $3,107 more than the typical human development graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Texas Tech University

12
173 Annual Graduates
$29,954 Median Starting Salary
$21,500 Median Student Debt

UT Austin is a very large public university located in the large city of Austin.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the human development program report average early career earnings of $29,954.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from The University of Texas at Austin

13
83 Annual Graduates
$31,078 Median Starting Salary
$24,958 Median Student Debt

Iowa State is a very large public university located in the city of Ames.

Soon after graduating, human development bachelor's recipients typically earn around $31,078 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Iowa State University

14
157 Annual Graduates
$34,734 Median Starting Salary
$26,569 Median Student Debt

Located in the midsize city of Fargo, North Dakota State University is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the human development & family studies program at North Dakota State University - Main Campus make $5,003 above the typical college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from North Dakota State University - Main Campus

15
105 Annual Graduates
$35,429 Median Starting Salary
$23,858 Median Student Debt

Located in the town of Stillwater, OSU is a public university with a very large student population.

Those human development & family studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Oklahoma State University - Main Campus receive $5,698 more than the typical human development graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Oklahoma State University - Main Campus

16
173 Annual Graduates
$29,041 Median Starting Salary
$23,250 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a very large student population.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the human development program earn an average of $29,041 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from Ohio State University - Main Campus

17
103 Annual Graduates
$31,769 Median Starting Salary
$20,400 Median Student Debt

University of Arizona is a very large public university located in the large city of Tucson.

Bachelor's recipients from the human development & family studies program at University of Arizona make $2,038 more than the typical college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from University of Arizona

18
161 Annual Graduates
$28,565 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

UA is a very large public university located in the small city of Tuscaloosa.

Soon after graduating, human development bachelor's recipients generally make about $28,565 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in human development & family studies from The University of Alabama

Rest of the Top Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
19 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ
20 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
21 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
22 Oregon State University Corvallis, OR
23 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
24 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
25 The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN

Human Development & Family Studies by Region

View the Best Human Development & Family Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

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One of 8 majors within the Family, Consumer & Human Sciences area of study, Human Development & Family Studies has other similar majors worth exploring.

Human Development Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Human Development & Family Studies 8,388
Child Development 1,702
Family & Community Services 1,071
Family Systems 471
Other Human Development, Family Studies, & Related Services 422
Early Childhood and Family Studies 250
Child Care & Support Services Management 225
Child Care Provider/Assistant 50
Adult Development & Aging 29
Developmental Services Worker 1

Related Major Annual Graduates
Food, Nutrition & Related Services 2,947
Textile & Apparel Studies 2,587
General Family & Consumer Sciences 2,446
Family & Consumer Economics 1,193
Human Sciences Business Services 618
Housing 153
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences (Other) 149

Notes and References

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