2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Social Work (Income $30-$48k)
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. 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 Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Social Work is the 12th most popular major in the country with 57,618 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, social work graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $36,459 and had an average of $30,084 in loans still to pay off.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 21,855 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, we looked at 450 colleges that offer a degree in social work. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality social work programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the social work program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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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 Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. 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 Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k
The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Social Work (Income $30-$48k)
Out of the 450 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Madison, Wisconsin, and it awarded 71 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
UW - Madison not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison is $6,860 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low student loan default rate of 0.8% 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 more about Social Work at University of Wisconsin - Madison
Out of the 450 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Los Angeles landed the #2 spot on the list. Cal State LA is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 224 bachelors’s social work degrees to qualified students.
Cal State LA excels when it comes to social work quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State LA is $2,117 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Hunter College. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k. New York, New York is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s social work degrees to 49 students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Hunter is $2,394 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Lehman College. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k. Located in Bronx, New York, this fairly large public school awarded 136 degrees to qualified bachelors’s social work students in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Lehman also did well on our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category. The estimated yearly cost for Lehman College is $3,289 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Out of the 450 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley landed the #5 spot on the list. Edinburg, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s social work degrees to 121 students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is $3,473 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low student loan default rate of 4.8% 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%.
University of California - Berkeley landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This large school is located in Berkeley, California, and it awarded 90 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k list, UC Berkeley has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $9,130 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend UC Berkeley.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read more about Social Work at University of California - Berkeley
University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. UW Seattle is a large public school situated in Seattle, Washington. It awarded 33 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UW Seattle, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $7,467 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend UW Seattle.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Washington - Seattle Campus Social Work Report
With a ranking of #8, California State University - Fresno did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Fresno State is a large public school situated in Fresno, California. It awarded 119 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend California State University - Fresno is $3,731 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. 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 University of West Florida landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. The University of West Florida is located in Pensacola, Florida and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 73 bachelors’s social work degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $3,912 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend UWF.
York College ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Jamaica, New York, this medium-sized public school awarded 79 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s social work students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend York is $3,967 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. UIUC is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 78 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UIUC also took the #9 spot in our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $8,464 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Florida International University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Miami, Florida, this large public school handed out 71 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s social work students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend FIU is $6,683 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
With a ranking of #13, University of South Florida - Main Campus did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of South Florida - Main Campus is located in Tampa, Florida and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 79 bachelors’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for University of South Florida - Main Campus is $5,616 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Social Work at University of South Florida - Main Campus
With a ranking of #14, Minot State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. MSU is a small school located in Minot, North Dakota that handed out 60 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
MSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Minot State University is $8,187 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
University of Wyoming came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. UW is a fairly large school located in Laramie, Wyoming that handed out 38 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on this list, UW is in the top on our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for UW is $9,200 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%.
Florida State University landed the #16 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This large school is located in Tallahassee, Florida, and it awarded 104 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
Florida State excels when it comes to social work quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend Florida State is $6,816 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Ohio State University - Main Campus ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Ohio State University - Main Campus is located in Columbus, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 154 bachelors’s social work degrees to qualified students.
Ohio State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #25 on our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Ohio State University - Main Campus is $10,037 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Central Florida did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #18. UCF is located in Orlando, Florida and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 123 bachelors’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for University of Central Florida is $7,847 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Indiana University - Northwest came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Gary, Indiana is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s social work degrees to 30 students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $4,960 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Indiana University - Northwest.
Read full report on Social Work at Indiana University - Northwest
University of Minnesota - Duluth ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. UMN Duluth is a fairly large school located in Duluth, Minnesota that handed out 25 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UMN Duluth is also in the top of our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend UMN Duluth is $7,992 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low 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%.
Heritage University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Heritage University is located in Toppenish, Washington and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 59 bachelors’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The yearly cost to attend Heritage University is $10,065 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
With a ranking of #22, California State University - Long Beach did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. Long Beach, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s social work degrees to 69 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, CSULB is also in the top of our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for CSULB is $7,595 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.
Full California State University - Long Beach Social Work Report
With a ranking of #23, California State University - San Bernardino did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k list. CSUSB is a public institution located in San Bernardino, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 52 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $5,869 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend CSUSB.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Social Work at California State University - San Bernardino
University of Wisconsin - River Falls did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #24. This medium-sized school is located in River Falls, Wisconsin, and it awarded 21 bachelors’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UW - River Falls, the school also landed the #24 spot in our “Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Wisconsin - River Falls is $10,124 for bachelor’s degree social work students whose families make $30-$48k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Northern Kentucky University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #25. Northern Kentucky University is a public institution located in Highland Heights, Kentucky. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 69 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $6,295 for Bachelor’s Degree Social Work students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend NKU.
Rest of the Best 50 in Best Value Social Work Schools for a Bachelor’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 Work Schools for a Bachelor’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 | Indiana University - South Bend | South Bend, IN |
| 52 | Minnesota State University - Mankato | Mankato, MN |
| 53 | University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh | Oshkosh, WI |
| 54 | University of North Dakota | Grand Forks, ND |
| 55 | Saint Cloud State University | Saint Cloud, MN |
| 56 | Northeastern State University | Tahlequah, OK |
| 57 | University of Wisconsin - Superior | Superior, WI |
| 58 | Boston University | Boston, MA |
| 59 | University of Missouri - St Louis | Saint Louis, MO |
| 60 | Indiana University - East | Richmond, IN |
| 61 | Shepherd University | Shepherdstown, WV |
| 62 | University of Utah | Salt Lake City, UT |
| 63 | University of Alaska Fairbanks | Fairbanks, AK |
| 64 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | Edwardsville, IL |
| 65 | San Francisco State University | San Francisco, CA |
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 66 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
| 67 | University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras | San Juan, PR |
| 68 | Ball State University | Muncie, IN |
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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 Army Medicine.
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