2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Liberal Arts is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 2nd of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 365,980 degrees were awarded to students with this major.
Across the Plains States region, there were 26,613 liberal arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,368 liberal arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,786 and $25,576 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” ranking analyzed 16 colleges that offered a degree in liberal arts. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality liberal arts programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the liberal arts program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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More Ways to Rank Liberal Arts Schools
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” list to help you make the college decision.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. 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 Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region.
Top 16 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts in the Plains States Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Fort Hays State University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region. This fairly large school is located in Hays, Kansas, and it awarded 249 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
FHSU also made our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #5. The estimated yearly cost for Fort Hays State University is $12,053 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students.
Out of the 16 schools in the Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Iowa State University landed the #2 spot on the list. Iowa State is a large school located in Ames, Iowa that handed out 80 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students list, Iowa State has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $15,496 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students per year to attend Iowa State University.
The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pittsburg State University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Pitt State is a medium-sized public school situated in Pittsburg, Kansas. It awarded 53 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Pitt State, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Pittsburg State University is $14,436 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Northern Iowa. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region. University of Northern Iowa is a medium-sized public school situated in Cedar Falls, Iowa. It awarded 76 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
UNI also took the #7 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $15,620 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students per year to attend University of Northern Iowa.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Missouri State University - Springfield. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Missouri State is a large school located in Springfield, Missouri that handed out 90 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
Missouri State also made our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #13. The yearly cost to attend Missouri State University - Springfield is $16,725 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students.
Read full report on Liberal Arts at Missouri State University - Springfield
Missouri Southern State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #6. Joplin, Missouri is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s liberal studies degrees to 79 students in 2019-2020.
Missouri Southern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #15 on our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Missouri Southern is $9,625 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students.
Read full report on Liberal Arts at Missouri Southern State University
University of Mary did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #7. UMary is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Bismarck, North Dakota. It awarded 1 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UMary, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $17,410 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students per year to attend University of Mary.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #8, Emporia State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Emporia, Kansas is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s liberal studies degrees to 10 students in 2019-2020.
ESU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $14,822 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students per year to attend Emporia State University.
Metropolitan State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #9. Metro State is a medium-sized public school situated in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It awarded 7 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Metro State, the school also landed the #14 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $15,225 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students per year to attend Metro State.
With a ranking of #10, University of Kansas did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. University of Kansas is a public institution located in Lawrence, Kansas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 104 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students list, KU has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Kansas is $18,918 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
University of Iowa landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of Iowa is a public institution located in Iowa City, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 190 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Iowa also made our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for Iowa is $19,145 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Missouri - Kansas City came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of Missouri - Kansas City is a fairly large school located in Kansas City, Missouri that handed out 151 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees in 2019-2020.
UMKC also took the #6 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Missouri - Kansas City is $14,643 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students.
Read more about Liberal Arts at University of Missouri - Kansas City
With a ranking of #13, Lincoln University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Jefferson City, Missouri is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s liberal studies degrees to 12 students in 2019-2020.
LU Missouri not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $7,830 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students per year to attend Lincoln University.
William Jewell College landed the #14 spot on the 2022 Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. William Jewell College is located in Liberty, Missouri and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 23 bachelors’s liberal studies degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students list, William Jewell has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $27,316 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students per year to attend William Jewell.
The low student loan default rate of 4.8% 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%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Grand View University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Grand View University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Des Moines, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 22 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Grand View University also made our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #10. The yearly cost to attend Grand View University is $19,826 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Liberal Studies students.
University of Missouri - St Louis came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of Missouri - St Louis is a public institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 97 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UMSL also made our “Best Liberal Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #9. It costs about $9,435 for plains states region bachelor’s degree liberal studies students per year to attend UMSL.
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Best Liberal Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
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Liberal Arts students in the Plains States Region
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Liberal Arts students with family income $48-$75k in the Plains States Region
Best Value Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts (Income Over $110k) in the Plains States Region
Liberal Arts students with family income exceeding $110k in the Plains States Region
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Liberal Arts students in the Plains States Region
Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts in the Plains States Region
Liberal Arts students in the Plains States Region
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Liberal Arts students getting aid in the Plains States Region
Best Value Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts (Income $30-$48k) in the Plains States Region
Liberal Arts students with family income $30-$48k in the Plains States Region
Best Value Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts (Income $75-$110k) in the Plains States Region
Liberal Arts students with family income $75-$110k in the Plains States Region
Best Value Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts in the Plains States Region
Liberal Arts students in the Plains States Region
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.
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