2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Materials Sciences in the Southwest Region

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Materials Science Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 689 people earned their degree in materials sciences, making the major the 258th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, materials sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $60,225 and had an average of $23,698 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southwest region, there were 43 materials sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $55,500 and $20,375 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 16 materials sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,078 and $37,227 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Materials Science Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region” ranking analyzed 2 colleges that offered a degree in materials sciences. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent materials 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 materials sciences program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

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 Materials Science Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest 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. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Materials Science Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region master’s degree materials science students.

Top 2 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Materials Sciences in the Southwest Region

#1

University of New Mexico - Main Campus

Albuquerque, New Mexico

#2 in overall quality

$19,890 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 2 schools in the Best Value Materials Science Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of New Mexico - Main Campus landed the #1 spot on the list. University of New Mexico - Main Campus is a public institution located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The school has a large population, and it awarded 8 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UNM also made our “Best Materials Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #2. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of New Mexico - Main Campus are $19,890, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Materials Sciences at UNM

#2

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

#1 in overall quality

$33,399 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Arizona. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Materials Science Schools for a Master’s in the Southwest Region list. Located in Tucson, Arizona, this large public school handed out 8 degrees to qualified masters’s materials science students in 2019-2020.

University of Arizona not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Materials Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Arizona are $33,399.

Read more about Materials Sciences at University of Arizona

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Materials Sciences

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 Per Henning.

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