2023 Best Value Colleges for Natural Sciences (Income $75-$110k) in the Plains States Region

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2020-2021, 2,214 people earned their degree in natural sciences, making the major the 345th most popular in the United States.

Across the Plains States region, there were 163 natural sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in natural sciences. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great natural sciences programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the natural sciences program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Natural Sciences Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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. 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 Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k

The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region natural sciences students whose families make $75-$110k.

Top 3 Best Value Colleges for Natural Sciences (Income $75-$110k) in the Plains States Region

1

Kansas State University
Manhattan, Kansas

#1 in overall quality

$20,156 Average Net Price

$45,255 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, Kansas State University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Manhattan, Kansas, this large public school handed out 84 diplomas to qualified ’s natural sciences students in 2020-2021.

K -State also took the #1 spot in our “Best Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Kansas State University is $20,156 for plains states region natural sciences students whose families make $75-$110k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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 more about Natural Sciences at Kansas State University

2

Missouri State University - Springfield
Springfield, Missouri

#3 in overall quality

$17,994 Average Net Price

$40,472 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Missouri State University - Springfield. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k list. Springfield, Missouri is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s natural sciences degrees to 11 students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Missouri State, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $17,994 for Plains States Region Natural Sciences students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Missouri State University - Springfield.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Natural Sciences at Missouri State University - Springfield

3

College of Saint Benedict
Saint Joseph, Minnesota

#2 in overall quality

$26,039 Average Net Price

$40,995 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend College of Saint Benedict. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $75-$110k. College of Saint Benedict is located in Saint Joseph, Minnesota and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 14 ’s natural sciences degrees to qualified students.

CSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Natural Sciences Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $26,039 for plains states region natural sciences students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend College of Saint Benedict.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Read full report on Natural Sciences at College of Saint Benedict

• Best Value Colleges for Natural Sciences (Income $75-$110k)

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 Agsftw.