by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Social Work is the 13th most popular major in the country with 58,326 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, social work graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $37,651 and had an average of $26,679 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Plains States region, there were 4,791 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,939 and $30,670 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 2,571 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $55,401 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s” ranking looked at 30 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social work. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have one of the most popular social work programs in the United States.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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 “Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s” list to help you make the college decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s”.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Walden University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. This large school is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and it awarded 856 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Washington University in St Louis. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. WUSTL is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 262 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Kansas. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. University of Kansas is located in Lawrence, Kansas and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 164 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of St Thomas Minnesota. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. This medium-sized school is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and it awarded 115 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. This large school is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and it awarded 114 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad 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 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
University of Nebraska at Omaha did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #6. University of Nebraska at Omaha is a fairly large public school situated in Omaha, Nebraska. It awarded 100 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Social Work at University of Nebraska at Omaha
University of Iowa came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. Iowa City, Iowa is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s social work degrees to 86 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Augsburg University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. Augsburg is a private not-for-profit institution located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school has a small population, and it awarded 79 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #9, University of North Dakota did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. Located in Grand Forks, North Dakota, this fairly large public school handed out 74 degrees to qualified masters’s social work students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #10, Saint Louis University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. SLU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Saint Louis, Missouri. It awarded 70 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Wichita State University landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. Wichita State University is a fairly large public school situated in Wichita, Kansas. It awarded 69 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
Missouri State University - Springfield did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #12. Located in Springfield, Missouri, this large public school awarded 64 degrees to qualified masters’s social work students in 2020-2021.
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%.
Read full report on Social Work at Missouri State University - Springfield
University of Missouri - St Louis came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. Located in Saint Louis, Missouri, this fairly large public school awarded 57 diplomas to qualified masters’s social work students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Social Work at University of Missouri - St Louis
Saint Ambrose University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #14. St. Ambrose University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Davenport, Iowa. It awarded 47 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 ranking of #15, University of Missouri - Kansas City did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. University of Missouri - Kansas City is located in Kansas City, Missouri and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 40 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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 more about Social Work at University of Missouri - Kansas City
With a ranking of #16, Washburn University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. Washburn University is a public institution located in Topeka, Kansas. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 39 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #17, The College of Saint Scholastica did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. This small school is located in Duluth, Minnesota, and it awarded 37 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Social Work at The College of Saint Scholastica
Saint Cloud State University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. St. Cloud State University is a fairly large public school situated in Saint Cloud, Minnesota. It awarded 36 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.6% 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 Social Work at Saint Cloud State University
University of Minnesota - Duluth landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. University of Minnesota - Duluth is located in Duluth, Minnesota and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 36 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Northern Iowa landed the #20 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. University of Northern Iowa is a public institution located in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 35 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.8% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
St Catherine University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. St Catherine University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It awarded 34 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Newman University ranked #22 on this year’s Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. Wichita, Kansas is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social work degrees to 33 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Minnesota State University - Mankato ranked #23 on this year’s Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s list. Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public school situated in Mankato, Minnesota. It awarded 28 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Park University landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. Park University is a medium-sized school located in Parkville, Missouri that handed out 28 masters’s social work degrees in 2020-2021.
Fort Hays State University landed the #25 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Social Work Major in the Plains States Region for a Master’s ranking. Located in Hays, Kansas, this fairly large public school handed out 26 diplomas to qualified masters’s social work students in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Social Work at Fort Hays State University
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
