2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
With 68,079 degrees handed out in 2019-2020, communication and media studies is the 9th most popular major in the United States. In 2017-2018, communication and media studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $32,728 and had an average of $24,931 in loans still to pay off.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 54,842 communication and media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking analyzed 743 colleges that offered a degree in communication and media studies. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality communication and media studies programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the communication and media studies 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.
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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k
The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $75-$110k)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Stanford University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s communications degrees to 19 students in 2019-2020.
Stanford also took the #8 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $10,631 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Stanford.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Stanford University Communication & Media Studies Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northwestern University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k. Northwestern University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 101 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
Northwestern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Northwestern University is $16,784 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. 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%.
Full Northwestern University Communication & Media Studies Report
Out of the 743 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a large public school situated in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It awarded 242 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
U-M did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $18,039 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Berea College. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k. Berea is a small school located in Berea, Kentucky that handed out 24 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $8,723 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Berea.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k. UPenn is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 82 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k list, UPenn has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UPenn is $20,632 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
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. The low 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.
With a ranking of #6, Hunter College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. Located in New York, New York, this large public school awarded 167 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s communications students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Hunter is $9,385 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #7, The City College of New York did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. This fairly large school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 95 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend The City College of New York is $9,546 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
Baruch College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #8. Baruch is located in New York, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 73 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for Baruch College is $11,501 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
With a ranking of #9, Vanderbilt University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. Vanderbilt University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Nashville, Tennessee. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 21 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on this list, Vanderbilt is in the top on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $14,890 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Vanderbilt.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at Vanderbilt University
Cornell University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. Cornell is a large school located in Ithaca, New York that handed out 90 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cornell, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $23,128 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Cornell.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at Cornell University
California State University - Fullerton landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. Cal State Fullerton is located in Fullerton, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 730 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Cal State Fullerton also did well on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Fullerton is $12,916 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full California State University - Fullerton Communication & Media Studies Report
University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. Located in Seattle, Washington, this large public school awarded 463 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s communications students in 2019-2020.
UW Seattle excels when it comes to communications quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $18,110 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend UW Seattle.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The low student loan default rate of 2.2% 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 Communication & Media Studies at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
Florida International University landed the #13 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. This large school is located in Miami, Florida, and it awarded 588 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
FIU also claimed a top spot on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $13,821 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend FIU.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Florida International University
Farmingdale State College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #14. This fairly large school is located in Farmingdale, New York, and it awarded 75 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Farmingdale State College is $11,882 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
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%.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Farmingdale State College
With a ranking of #15, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 598 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNC Chapel Hill, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $18,354 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend UNC Chapel Hill.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Brigham Young University - Idaho ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. This large school is located in Rexburg, Idaho, and it awarded 233 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend BYU - I is $9,850 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The low student loan default rate of 3.2% 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 Communication & Media Studies at Brigham Young University - Idaho
Queens College came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. Queens College is located in Queens, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 110 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for QC is $8,549 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
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%.
California State University - Los Angeles came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. Cal State LA is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 210 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Los Angeles is $9,576 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at Cal State LA
University of California - Berkeley landed the #19 spot on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. UC Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 284 bachelors’s communications degrees to qualified students.
UC Berkeley also took the #3 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC Berkeley is $21,401 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at UC Berkeley
With a ranking of #20, University of California - Davis did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. Located in Davis, California, this large public school handed out 323 degrees to qualified bachelors’s communications students in 2019-2020.
UC Davis also made our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #20. It costs about $17,622 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend UC Davis.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of Central Florida came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. University of Central Florida is a large public school situated in Orlando, Florida. It awarded 403 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on this list, UCF is in the top on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend UCF is $15,192 for bachelor’s degree communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
The low student loan default rate of 4.2% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.
Full University of Central Florida Communication & Media Studies Report
Truman State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #22. Truman State is a public institution located in Kirksville, Missouri. The school has a small population, and it awarded 50 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on this list, Truman State is in the top on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend Truman State University is $13,624 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
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 student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Truman State University
University of Wisconsin - La Crosse did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #23. University of Wisconsin - La Crosse is a fairly large school located in La Crosse, Wisconsin that handed out 103 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, UW - La Crosse also did well on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $16,573 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend University of Wisconsin - La Crosse.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at University of Wisconsin - La Crosse
Brooklyn College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #24. Brooklyn, New York is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s communications degrees to 60 students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $9,114 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Brooklyn College.
The student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Brooklyn College
With a ranking of #25, Utah Valley University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k list. This large school is located in Orem, Utah, and it awarded 196 bachelors’s communications degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Utah Valley University is $12,141 for Bachelor’s Degree Communications students whose families make $75-$110k.
Read more about Communication & Media Studies at Utah Valley University
Rest of the Best 50 in Best Value Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k
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 Communications Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Making $75-$110k
While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Rank | College | Location |
---|---|---|
51 | University of Arizona | Tucson, AZ |
52 | Florida Gulf Coast University | Fort Myers, FL |
53 | Indiana University - Bloomington | Bloomington, IN |
54 | Iowa State University | Ames, IA |
55 | California State University - Sacramento | Sacramento, CA |
56 | University of North Georgia | Dahlonega, GA |
57 | Southeastern Oklahoma State University | Durant, OK |
58 | Arizona State University - Tempe | Tempe, AZ |
59 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Champaign, IL |
60 | University of North Dakota | Grand Forks, ND |
61 | University of Minnesota - Crookston | Crookston, MN |
62 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | San Antonio, TX |
63 | University of Wisconsin - River Falls | River Falls, WI |
64 | University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point | Stevens Point, WI |
65 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
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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 UNU-WIDER from Helsinki, Finland.
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