2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k
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 Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
With 205,726 degrees handed out in 2019-2020, social sciences is the 5th most popular major in the United States. In 2017-2018, social sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $34,801 and had an average of $23,466 in loans still to pay off.
At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 16,724 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,398 and $43,194 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 360 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social sciences. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great social sciences 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 social sciences program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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The social sciences 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 Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k”.
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 Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k.
Top 25 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Social Sciences (Income $30-$48k)
Out of the 360 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Duke University landed the #1 spot on the list. Durham, North Carolina is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social sciences degrees to 166 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Duke, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Duke University are $59,140, but some majors have different tuition rates.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Harvard University. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Harvard is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 202 masters’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our master’s degree social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, Harvard has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Harvard University are $50,654.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Stanford University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k. Stanford University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Stanford, California. It awarded 73 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Stanford also made our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #6. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Stanford are $55,011.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Yale University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. New Haven, Connecticut is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social sciences degrees to 157 students in 2019-2020.
Yale did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Yale are $44,500.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northwestern University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k. Northwestern is a private not-for-profit institution located in Evanston, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 64 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Northwestern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Northwestern are $56,567, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Pennsylvania came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 66 diplomas to qualified masters’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our master’s degree social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, UPenn has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Pennsylvania are $41,760, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
With a ranking of #7, Johns Hopkins University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Johns Hopkins is a large school located in Baltimore, Maryland that handed out 1,031 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our master’s degree social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, Johns Hopkins has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Johns Hopkins are $59,425, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Rice University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #8. This medium-sized school is located in Houston, Texas, and it awarded 46 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Rice excels when it comes to social sciences quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category. Average graduate tuition and fees at Rice University are $47,913, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Williams College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #9. Williams College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The school has a small population, and it awarded 27 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Williams did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #16 on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Williams are $59,350, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #10, Princeton University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Princeton, New Jersey is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social sciences degrees to 67 students in 2019-2020.
Princeton not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #17 on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Princeton are $56,470, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Washington University in St Louis came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Washington University in St Louis is located in Saint Louis, Missouri and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 34 masters’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
WUSTL did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #20 on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at WUSTL are $56,562, but some majors have different tuition rates.
With a ranking of #12, University of Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social sciences degrees to 383 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our master’s degree social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, UChicago has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Chicago are $61,548, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Brown University landed the #13 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Brown is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Providence, Rhode Island. It awarded 28 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Brown, the school also landed the #18 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Brown are $60,363, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in New York, New York, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 488 degrees to qualified masters’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.
Columbia also made our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #11. Average graduate tuition and fees at Columbia University in the City of New York are $51,194, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Full Columbia University in the City of New York Social Sciences Report
Vanderbilt University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Nashville, Tennessee is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social sciences degrees to 41 students in 2019-2020.
Vanderbilt also took the #12 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Vanderbilt University are $50,624.
Cornell University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #16. Cornell is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Ithaca, New York. It awarded 57 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Cornell not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #15 on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Cornell are $30,042, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Tufts University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Tufts is a fairly large school located in Medford, Massachusetts that handed out 279 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Tufts also made our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #10. Average graduate tuition and fees at Tufts University are $55,168, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. U-M is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 91 masters’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
U-M also took the #24 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor are $49,548, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read more about Social Sciences at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
With a ranking of #19, University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of Wisconsin - Madison is a public institution located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school has a large population, and it awarded 238 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UW - Madison also made our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #23. Average graduate tuition and fees at UW - Madison are $25,523, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Florida did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #20. UF is a large school located in Gainesville, Florida that handed out 51 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Average graduate tuition and fees at UF are $30,130, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Georgetown University landed the #21 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Washington, District of Columbia is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social sciences degrees to 472 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Georgetown, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Georgetown University are $53,591.
University of Notre Dame did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #22. University of Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit institution located in Notre Dame, Indiana. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 48 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Notre Dame, the school also landed the #14 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Notre Dame are $57,522, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Notre Dame
Boston College landed the #23 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Boston College is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. It awarded 55 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Boston College also made our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #21. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Boston College are $31,930.
With a ranking of #24, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. UNC Chapel Hill is a large school located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina that handed out 51 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, UNC Chapel Hill also did well on our “Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are $30,248, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Hunter College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #25. This large school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 65 masters’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Hunter are $20,828.
Rest of the Best 50 in Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Rest of the Top 15% Colleges in Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Master’s For Those Making $30-$48k
While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus | Atlanta, GA |
| 52 | The City College of New York | New York, NY |
| 53 | California State University - Fullerton | Fullerton, CA |
| 54 | University of Maryland - College Park | College Park, MD |
| 55 | Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus, OH |
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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.
Credits
- Credit for the banner image above goes to AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.
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