2026 Best Value Value Schools in the Southwest Region
[Value](/majors/multi-interdisciplinary-studies/earth-systems-science/general/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The schools below stand out for delivering a strong value education at a price that pays off.
For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 2 schools to find the best return on investment for value students.
What’s on this page:
2026 Best Value Value Schools in the Southwest Region
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in value, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value Value Schools
For return on investment in value, no school beat Arizona State University this year. Located in the city of Tempe, Arizona State University is a very large public university. In-state tuition and fees average $12,223, while out-of-state students pay about $33,139. Students borrow a median of $21,842 to complete the value program here. Soon after graduation, value degree recipients from Arizona State University generally make around $55,876. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. Roughly 90% of applicants are accepted.
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 2 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 1 ranked schools only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
