2023 Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Library & Information Science is the 121st most popular major in the country with 5,950 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, library and information science graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $43,949 and had an average of $27,472 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 365 library and information science graduates with average earnings and debt of $41,760 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking analyzed 4 colleges that offered a degree in library and information science. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great library and information science programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the library and information science program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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 Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k

The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region library science students whose families make $30-$48k.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Library & Information Science (Income $30-$48k) in the Plains States Region

1

Emporia State University
Emporia, Kansas

#1 in overall quality

$12,971 Average Net Price

$40,991 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Emporia State University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. This medium-sized school is located in Emporia, Kansas, and it awarded 165 ’s library science degrees in 2020-2021.

ESU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $12,971 for plains states region library science students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend ESU.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Library & Information Science at Emporia State University

2

University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa

#2 in overall quality

$15,508 Average Net Price

$50,430 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of Iowa is located in Iowa City, Iowa and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 33 ’s library science degrees to qualified students.

Iowa also took the #2 spot in our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Iowa is $15,508 for Plains States Region Library Science students whose families make $30-$48k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Iowa Library & Information Science Report

3

University of Central Missouri
Warrensburg, Missouri

#3 in overall quality

$12,120 Average Net Price

$41,823 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Central Missouri landed the #3 spot on the list. Warrensburg, Missouri is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s library science degrees to 25 students in 2020-2021.

UCM did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Central Missouri is $12,120 for plains states region library science students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Library & Information Science at UCM

4

St Catherine University
Saint Paul, Minnesota

#4 in overall quality

$15,209 Average Net Price

$53,926 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend St Catherine University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. St Catherine University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The school has a small population, and it awarded 33 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

St. Kate’s also took the #4 spot in our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $15,209 for plains states region library science students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend St. Kate’s.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full St Catherine University Library & Information Science Report

• Best Value Colleges for Library & Information Science (Income $30-$48k)

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.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to Diliff.