2027 Best Value Public Master’s Degree Schools
[Public](/majors/social-sciences/sociology/public/) programs reward a close look at where your money goes furthest. The best values balance affordable tuition against strong post-graduation earnings.
To produce this 2027 ranking, College Factual evaluated 1 schools on the balance of cost and outcomes for public students.
What’s on this page:
2027 Best Value Public Schools in the United States
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in public, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value Public Schools
Texas State University San Marcos earned the #1 spot for value among public schools in the United States. Texas State University San Marcos is a very large public school located in the city of San Marcos. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $11,450, compared with $22,930 for out-of-state students. Public graduates carry a median of $25,000 in student loans. Public graduates of Texas State University San Marcos earn a median of $52,284 early in their careers. Set against $25,000 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. Texas State University San Marcos admits about 89% of applicants.
Other Public Degree Levels
Looking for a different degree level? Compare best-value Public rankings across degree levels:
View All Public Rankings >
Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2027 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 1 school evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the one ranked school only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
