2023 Best Value Colleges for Optometry (Income $30-$48k)
13
Ranked Colleges
1,822
Degrees Awarded
$14,700
Avg Net Price*
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 Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 1,822 people earned their degree in optometry, making the major the 302nd most popular in the United States.
This year’s “Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 13 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in optometry. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent optometry programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the optometry program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k.
Top 13 Best Value Colleges for Optometry (Income $30-$48k)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indiana University - Bloomington. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Bloomington, Indiana is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s optometry degrees to 84 students in 2020-2021.
IU Bloomington did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Optometry Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Indiana University - Bloomington is $7,061 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.4% 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%.
Read full report on Optometry at IU Bloomington
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the #2 spot on the list. This large school is located in Berkeley, California, and it awarded 83 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our optometry students whose families make $30-$48k list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Berkeley is $9,999 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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 UC Berkeley Optometry Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Houston. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k. Houston, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s optometry degrees to 105 students in 2020-2021.
UH did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Optometry Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Houston is $10,664 for Optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full UH Optometry Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Ohio State University - Main Campus. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k. This large school is located in Columbus, Ohio, and it awarded 65 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
Ohio State also took the #9 spot in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. It costs about $8,581 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Ohio State.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default 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 full report on Optometry at Ohio State
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Missouri - St Louis landed the #5 spot on the list. UMSL is a fairly large school located in Saint Louis, Missouri that handed out 47 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
UMSL also made our “Best Optometry Schools” list, coming in at #19. The estimated yearly cost for University of Missouri - St Louis is $8,324 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Missouri - St Louis Optometry Report
Ferris State University landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Big Rapids, Michigan, and it awarded 37 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Ferris, the school also landed the #16 spot in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Ferris is $9,859 for Optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
Read more about Optometry at Ferris State University
With a ranking of #7, Northeastern State University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. NSU is a public institution located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 28 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at NSU, the school also landed the #20 spot in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Northeastern State University is $8,315 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Optometry at Northeastern State University
University of Alabama at Birmingham ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of Alabama at Birmingham is located in Birmingham, Alabama and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 50 ’s optometry degrees to qualified students.
UAB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Optometry Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend UAB is $14,800 for Optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full UAB Optometry Report
Pacific University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Pacific is a small school located in Forest Grove, Oregon that handed out 88 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
Pacific also made our “Best Optometry Schools” list, coming in at #6. The yearly cost to attend Pacific University is $21,500 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Optometry at Pacific University
Nova Southeastern University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Nova Southeastern University is located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 107 ’s optometry degrees to qualified students.
NUS Florida also took the #15 spot in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Nova Southeastern University is $23,305 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full NUS Florida Optometry Report
University of the Incarnate Word landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. UIW is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in San Antonio, Texas. It awarded 64 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
UIW did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #13 on our “Best Optometry Schools” list. It costs about $21,239 for optometry students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of the Incarnate Word.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Optometry at University of the Incarnate Word
University of Pikeville ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. This small school is located in Pikeville, Kentucky, and it awarded 55 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our optometry students whose families make $30-$48k list, UPIKE has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UPIKE is $12,358 for Optometry students whose families make $30-$48k.
Read more about Optometry at University of Pikeville
Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Best Value Optometry Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and it awarded 53 ’s optometry degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our optometry students whose families make $30-$48k list, MCPHS University has also earned the #17 rank in our “Best Optometry Schools” ranking. It costs about $34,877 for Optometry students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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 Optometry at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
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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
- *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.
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