2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Philosophy
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. 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 Philosophy Schools for a Master’s” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2019-2020, 10,015 people earned their degree in philosophy, making the major the 81st most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, philosophy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,067 and had an average of $22,199 in loans still to pay off.
At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 804 philosophy graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,398 and $43,194 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s” ranking looked at 80 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in philosophy. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality philosophy programs that also have a lower cost than 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 philosophy program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools 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 Philosophy Schools for a Master’s
The colleges and universities below are the best for master’s degree philosophy students.
Top 25 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Philosophy
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. SEBTS is located in Wake Forest, North Carolina and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 3 masters’s philosophy degrees to qualified students.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary are $5,830, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Full Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary Philosophy Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Biola University. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. Located in La Mirada, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 8 diplomas to qualified masters’s philosophy students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Biola University are $11,772, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Out of the 80 schools in the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Franciscan University of Steubenville landed the #3 spot on the list. Franciscan U is a small school located in Steubenville, Ohio that handed out 5 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Franciscan U are $12,888, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Full Franciscan University of Steubenville Philosophy Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Villanova University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s. Villanova University is located in Villanova, Pennsylvania and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 6 masters’s philosophy degrees to qualified students.
Villanova not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Villanova University are $20,719, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Out of the 80 schools in the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Long Beach, California, this large public school awarded 9 diplomas to qualified masters’s philosophy students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at California State University - Long Beach are $17,784, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read full report on Philosophy at California State University - Long Beach
West Chester University of Pennsylvania ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. This fairly large school is located in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and it awarded 11 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at WCUPA are $16,758.
Read full report on Philosophy at West Chester University of Pennsylvania
With a ranking of #7, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 19 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Loyola University Chicago are $19,154, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #8, Texas State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. Texas State is a large school located in San Marcos, Texas that handed out 9 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Texas State University are $17,040, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. UW - Madison is located in Madison, Wisconsin and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 5 masters’s philosophy degrees to qualified students.
UW - Madison not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #19 on our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Wisconsin - Madison are $25,523, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read more about Philosophy at University of Wisconsin - Madison
Texas Tech University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. This large school is located in Lubbock, Texas, and it awarded 9 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Texas Tech are $17,530, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
With a ranking of #11, Marquette University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. Marquette is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It awarded 5 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Marquette University are $21,690, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Fordham University landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. Fordham University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Bronx, New York. It awarded 28 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Fordham U not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Fordham University are $23,846, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of North Texas ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. University of North Texas is a large school located in Denton, Texas that handed out 3 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UNT are $15,618, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
With a ranking of #14, San Francisco State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. SFSU is located in San Francisco, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 18 masters’s philosophy degrees to qualified students.
Average graduate tuition and fees at SFSU are $17,944, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read more about Philosophy at San Francisco State University
Florida State University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. Florida State is a large school located in Tallahassee, Florida that handed out 12 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Florida State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #24 on our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Florida State University are $26,707, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Texas A&M University - College Station landed the #16 spot on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. College Station, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s philosophy degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Texas A&M College Station are $22,743, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read more about Philosophy at Texas A&M University - College Station
With a ranking of #17, Loyola Marymount University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 7 diplomas to qualified masters’s philosophy students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Loyola Marymount University are $19,756, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Georgia did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #18. Located in Athens, Georgia, this large public school handed out 3 diplomas to qualified masters’s philosophy students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UGA are $27,476, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill landed the #19 spot on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. UNC Chapel Hill is located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 7 masters’s philosophy degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNC Chapel Hill, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are $30,248, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read more about Philosophy at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Boston College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #20. Boston College is a fairly large school located in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts that handed out 24 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Boston College not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Boston College are $31,930, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Cornell University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. This large school is located in Ithaca, New York, and it awarded 7 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Cornell also made our “Best Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #6. Average graduate tuition and fees at Cornell University are $30,042, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Memphis came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. University of Memphis is a large public school situated in Memphis, Tennessee. It awarded 3 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UofM are $14,202.
Kent State University at Kent ranked #23 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s list. Kent, Ohio is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s philosophy degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at Kent State University at Kent are $21,952, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #24. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is a large public school situated in Cincinnati, Ohio. It awarded 4 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UC are $26,644.
Read full report on Philosophy at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Virginia Tech landed the #25 spot on the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools for a Master’s ranking. This large school is located in Blacksburg, Virginia, and it awarded 2 masters’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Virginia Tech are $30,547.
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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.
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