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2023 Best Value Colleges for Political Economy

11 Ranked Colleges
358 Degrees Awarded
$25,000 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Political Economy Schools

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 Political Economy Schools” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Political Economy is the 665th most popular major in the country with 358 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.

This year’s “Best Value Political Economy Schools” ranking analyzed 11 colleges that offered a degree in political economy. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great political economy programs and cost less that 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 political economy program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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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 Political Economy Schools” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important 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 Political Economy Schools

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Political Economy Schools.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Political Economy

1

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Political Economy Schools that were part of this year’s ranking, Arizona State University - Tempe landed the #1 spot on the list. Arizona State University - Tempe is a public institution located in Tempe, Arizona. The school has a large population, and it awarded 16 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

ASU - Tempe not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Political Economy Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend ASU - Tempe is $13,107 for political economy students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Political Economy at ASU - Tempe

2
SUNY Old Westbury crest
SUNY Old Westbury
Old Westbury, New York

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend SUNY Old Westbury. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Political Economy Schools list. SUNY Old Westbury is a small school located in Old Westbury, New York that handed out 58 ’s political economy degrees in 2020-2021.

SUNY Old Westbury also made our “Best Political Economy Schools” list, coming in at #9. The yearly cost to attend SUNY Old Westbury is $10,182 for Political Economy students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full SUNY Old Westbury Political Economy Report

3
EOU crest
Eastern Oregon University
La Grande, Oregon

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern Oregon University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Political Economy Schools list. EOU is a public institution located in La Grande, Oregon. The school has a small population, and it awarded 6 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at EOU, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Eastern Oregon University is $14,436 for Political Economy students.

Full Eastern Oregon University Political Economy Report

4
Rhodes College crest
Rhodes College
Memphis, Tennessee

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Political Economy Schools that were part of this year’s ranking, Rhodes College landed the #4 spot on the list. Rhodes College is located in Memphis, Tennessee and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 ’s political economy degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Rhodes College, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. It costs about $25,881 for political economy students per year to attend Rhodes College.

The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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%.

Full Rhodes College Political Economy Report

5
Puget Sound crest
University of Puget Sound
Tacoma, Washington

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Puget Sound. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Political Economy Schools. Located in Tacoma, Washington, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 22 degrees to qualified ’s political economy students in 2020-2021.

Puget Sound also made our “Best Political Economy Schools” list, coming in at #6. The estimated yearly cost for Puget Sound is $33,562 for Political Economy students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full University of Puget Sound Political Economy Report

6

University of Washington - Bothell Campus came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Political Economy Schools ranking. Located in Bothell, Washington, this medium-sized public school awarded 80 diplomas to qualified ’s political economy students in 2020-2021.

UW Bothell also made our “Best Political Economy Schools” list, coming in at #11. The estimated yearly cost for UW Bothell is $11,562 for political economy students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full UW Bothell Political Economy Report

7
Rollins crest
Rollins College
Winter Park, Florida

Rollins College landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Best Value Political Economy Schools ranking. Rollins is located in Winter Park, Florida and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 11 ’s political economy degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our political economy students list, Rollins has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Rollins is $29,562 for Political Economy students.

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 4.1% 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%.

Full Rollins College Political Economy Report

8
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, North Carolina

Duke University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Political Economy Schools ranking, coming in at #8. Duke University is located in Durham, North Carolina and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 4 ’s political economy degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our political economy students list, Duke has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. It costs about $32,459 for Political Economy students per year to attend Duke University.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read more about Political Economy at Duke

9
Georgetown crest
Georgetown University
Washington, District of Columbia

Georgetown University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Best Value Political Economy Schools ranking. Georgetown University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Washington, District of Columbia. It awarded 58 ’s political economy degrees in 2020-2021.

Georgetown also took the #1 spot in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. It costs about $32,108 for Political Economy students per year to attend Georgetown University.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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 full report on Political Economy at Georgetown

10
Tulane crest
Tulane University of Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana

With a ranking of #10, Tulane University of Louisiana did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Political Economy Schools list. Tulane University of Louisiana is located in New Orleans, Louisiana and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 36 ’s political economy degrees to qualified students.

Tulane also took the #4 spot in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Tulane University of Louisiana is $39,749 for Political Economy students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full Tulane University of Louisiana Political Economy Report

11
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Political Economy Schools ranking. USC is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 29 ’s political economy degrees in 2020-2021.

USC also took the #3 spot in our “Best Political Economy Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for USC is $32,569 for Political Economy students.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Political Economy at University of Southern California

Notes and References

References

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