2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Library & Information Science 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 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 for a Master’s in the Plains States Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 5,403 people earned their degree in library and information science, making the major the 124th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, library and information science graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $41,496 and had an average of $36,654 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 301 library and information science graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,600 and $33,408 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 289 library and information science graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,438 and $39,783 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region” ranking analyzed 4 colleges that offered a degree in library and information science. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent library and information science programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the library and information science program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region” list to help you make the college decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region.

Top 4 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Library & Information Science in the Plains States Region

#1

Emporia State University

Emporia, Kansas

#1 in overall quality

$22,058 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$40,341 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Emporia State University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Emporia State University is located in Emporia, Kansas and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 148 masters’s library science degrees to qualified students.

ESU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Library & Information Science Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at ESU are $22,058, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Library & Information Science at Emporia State University

#2

St Catherine University

Saint Paul, Minnesota

#3 in overall quality

$17,400 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$46,407 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend St Catherine University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region. This small school is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and it awarded 34 masters’s library science degrees in 2019-2020.

St. Kate’s also took the #3 spot in our “Best Library & Information Science Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at St. Kate’s are $17,400.

Full St. Kate’s Library & Information Science Report

#3

University of Central Missouri

Warrensburg, Missouri

#4 in overall quality

$16,394 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$41,565 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Central Missouri landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Central Missouri is a medium-sized public school situated in Warrensburg, Missouri. It awarded 22 masters’s library science degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our plains states region master’s degree library science students list, UCM has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Library & Information Science Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Central Missouri are $16,394, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Library & Information Science at University of Central Missouri

#4

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa

#2 in overall quality

$27,613 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$41,937 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Library Science Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region list. Iowa is a large public school situated in Iowa City, Iowa. It awarded 37 masters’s library science degrees in 2019-2020.

Iowa also made our “Best Library & Information Science Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #2. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Iowa are $27,613.

Read full report on Library & Information Science at Iowa

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Library & Information Science

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.

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