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2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid

11 Ranked Colleges
47 Degrees Awarded
$33,000 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 57,618 people earned their degree in social work, making the major the 12th most popular in the United States. 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.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 10,171 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,708 and $29,897 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 47 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $74,428 and $121,375 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social work. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent social work programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the social work program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Social Work Schools

The social work 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 Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid”.

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. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid.

Top 11 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Social Work in the Great Lakes Region (With Aid)

#2 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #1 spot on the list. University of Wisconsin - Madison is a public institution located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social work students with aid list, UW - Madison has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Wisconsin - Madison are $25,523, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Wisconsin - Madison

#3 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #2 spot on the list. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 3 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social work students with aid list, UIUC has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UIUC are $30,083, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full UIUC Social Work Report

#8 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and it awarded 5 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at IUPUI, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at IUPUI are $26,013.

Read more about Social Work at Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis

#4

Michigan State University

East Lansing, Michigan
#5 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Michigan State University landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in East Lansing, Michigan, this large public school handed out 4 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social work students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Michigan State, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Michigan State are $37,056, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Social Work at Michigan State

#9 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee landed the #5 spot on the list. This large school is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it awarded 3 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

UWM did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UWM are $25,295, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

#6

Aurora University

Aurora, Illinois
#7 in overall quality

Aurora University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Aurora, Illinois, and it awarded 8 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Aurora, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Aurora University are $13,200, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Social Work at Aurora

#6 in overall quality

Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #7. Located in Columbus, Ohio, this large public school handed out 3 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s social work students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social work students with aid list, Ohio State has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Ohio State are $37,141.

Full Ohio State Social Work Report

#8

Wayne State University

Detroit, Michigan
#10 in overall quality

Wayne State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in Detroit, Michigan, and it awarded 2 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

Wayne State also took the #10 spot in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Wayne State are $37,215.

Full Wayne State University Social Work Report

#9

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

University of Chicago came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. This fairly large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 11 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

UChicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UChicago are $61,548, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full University of Chicago Social Work Report

#4 in overall quality

Case Western Reserve University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Case Western is a fairly large school located in Cleveland, Ohio that handed out 1 doctorate’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social work students with aid list, Case Western has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Case Western are $47,958.

Full Case Western Reserve University Social Work Report

#11

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois
#4 in overall quality

Loyola University Chicago came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 3 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social work students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Loyola Chicago, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Social Work Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Loyola University Chicago are $19,154.

Read more about Social Work at Loyola University Chicago

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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.

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