2023 Best Value Colleges for Fisheries Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in the Great Lakes 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 Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2020-2021, 483 people earned their degree in fisheries sciences, making the major the 290th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, fisheries sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $29,766 and had an average of $26,788 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 144 fisheries sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $26,370 and $23,283 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 4 colleges that offer a degree in fisheries sciences. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent fisheries sciences programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the fisheries sciences 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

The fisheries school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k”.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Fisheries Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in the Great Lakes Region

1

Purdue University - Main Campus
West Lafayette, Indiana

#2 in overall quality

$5,995 Average Net Price

$53,430 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Purdue University - Main Campus. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Purdue University - Main Campus is located in West Lafayette, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 40 ’s fisheries degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our great lakes region fisheries students whose families make $0-$30k list, Purdue has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Fisheries Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Purdue University - Main Campus is $5,995 for great lakes region fisheries students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Purdue Fisheries Sciences Report

2

University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point
Stevens Point, Wisconsin

#1 in overall quality

$7,903 Average Net Price

$36,544 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, this medium-sized public school handed out 55 diplomas to qualified ’s fisheries students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our great lakes region fisheries students whose families make $0-$30k list, UW - Stevens Point has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Fisheries Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UW - Stevens Point is $7,903 for great lakes region fisheries students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Fisheries Sciences at University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point

3

Lake Superior State University
Sault Ste Marie, Michigan

#3 in overall quality

$7,159 Average Net Price

$41,512 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Lake Superior State University landed the #3 spot on the list. Sault Ste Marie, Michigan is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s fisheries degrees to 29 students in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Lake Superior State University, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Fisheries Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Lake Superior State University is $7,159 for great lakes region fisheries students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Lake Superior State University Fisheries Sciences Report

4

Northern Michigan University
Marquette, Michigan

#4 in overall quality

$8,958 Average Net Price

$33,476 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Fisheries Schools in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northern Michigan University landed the #4 spot on the list. Northern Michigan University is a medium-sized public school situated in Marquette, Michigan. It awarded 14 ’s fisheries degrees in 2020-2021.

Northern Michigan University also made our “Best Fisheries Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend Northern Michigan University is $8,958 for Great Lakes Region Fisheries students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Fisheries Sciences at Northern Michigan University

• Best Value Colleges for Fisheries Sciences (Income $0-$30k)

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 Ootahara.