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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Journalism (Income $0-$30k) in the Far Western US Region

36 Ranked Colleges
1,554 Degrees Awarded
$10,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor's in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 14,528 people earned their degree in journalism, making the major the 62nd most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, journalism graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $31,042 and had an average of $24,628 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Far Western US region, there were 2,183 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $29,977 and $21,822 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,554 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,083 and $22,209 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 36 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in journalism. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality journalism 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 journalism 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.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Journalism (Income $0-$30k) in the Far Western US Region

Out of the 36 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #1 spot on the list. Seattle, Washington is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 40 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UW Seattle, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $7,850 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. 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 UW Seattle Journalism Report

#20 in overall quality

Out of the 36 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Fresno, California, this large public school awarded 113 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k list, Fresno State has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $3,264 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Fresno State.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, 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 87%.

Read full report on Journalism at Fresno State

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Irvine. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Irvine, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 36 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k list, UC Irvine has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $9,558 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

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 school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of California - Irvine Journalism Report

#4

San Diego State University

San Diego, California

Out of the 36 schools in the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, San Diego State University landed the #4 spot on the list. San Diego State University is a public institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 133 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU also took the #11 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $8,870 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend SDSU.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, 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 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at SDSU

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Long Beach. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Long Beach, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 101 students in 2019-2020.

CSULB not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #17 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for CSULB is $6,364 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.6% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Journalism at CSULB

California State University - Dominguez Hills landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Carson, California, and it awarded 17 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $2,455 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CSUDH.

The 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 Journalism at California State University - Dominguez Hills

#7

Washington State University

Pullman, Washington
#14 in overall quality

Washington State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Wazzu is located in Pullman, Washington and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 54 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

Wazzu did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Wazzu is $9,334 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at Washington State University

California State University - Northridge came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Northridge, California, this large public school awarded 134 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

CSUN also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #23. It costs about $5,945 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend CSUN.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full CSUN Journalism Report

With a ranking of #9, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. San Luis Obispo, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 74 students in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $12,475 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo.

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 school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo Journalism Report

#10

Western Washington University

Bellingham, Washington

Western Washington University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Western Washington University is a fairly large public school situated in Bellingham, Washington. It awarded 77 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at WWU, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Western Washington University is $9,743 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%.

Read full report on Journalism at WWU

With a ranking of #11, University of Nevada - Reno did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Reno, Nevada, and it awarded 106 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

UNR also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $11,587 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UNR.

Read full report on Journalism at University of Nevada - Reno

#12

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Southern California is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 78 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

USC also took the #1 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Southern California is $14,668 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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.

Read full report on Journalism at University of Southern California

#13

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California

San Francisco State University landed the #13 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in San Francisco, California, this large public school awarded 54 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at SFSU, the school also landed the #18 spot in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $11,123 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend SFSU.

Read more about Journalism at SFSU

California State University - Sacramento landed the #14 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Sac State is a large school located in Sacramento, California that handed out 39 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Sacramento is $6,819 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Sacramento Journalism Report

California State University - Chico landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Chico State is located in Chico, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 68 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.

Chico State also made our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #16. It costs about $10,260 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California State University - Chico.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Journalism at Chico State

#16

Eastern Washington University

Cheney, Washington

Eastern Washington University came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Cheney, Washington, this fairly large public school handed out 9 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

It costs about $8,473 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Eastern Washington University.

Read more about Journalism at EWU

#17

San Jose State University

San Jose, California

San Jose State University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. San Jose, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 27 students in 2019-2020.

San Jose State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #15 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State University is $10,940 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Journalism at San Jose State

#18

University of Hawaii at Manoa

Honolulu, Hawaii

University of Hawaii at Manoa ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Honolulu, Hawaii, this fairly large public school awarded 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2019-2020.

UH Manoa not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #25 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The yearly cost to attend UH Manoa is $10,986 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low 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%.

Full UH Manoa Journalism Report

#19

Central Washington University

Ellensburg, Washington
#22 in overall quality

Central Washington University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #19. Ellensburg, Washington is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 11 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k list, CWU has also earned the #22 rank in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for CWU is $9,875 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Journalism at Central Washington University

#20

University of Alaska Anchorage

Anchorage, Alaska

University of Alaska Anchorage came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Anchorage, Alaska, and it awarded 13 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $9,986 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Alaska Anchorage.

Full UAA Journalism Report

#21

University of Alaska Fairbanks

Fairbanks, Alaska

University of Alaska Fairbanks ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Alaska Fairbanks is a public institution located in Fairbanks, Alaska. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 2 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for University of Alaska Fairbanks is $7,133 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full University of Alaska Fairbanks Journalism Report

#22

University of Oregon

Eugene, Oregon

With a ranking of #22, University of Oregon did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Eugene, Oregon, and it awarded 128 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k list, UO has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UO is $12,690 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%.

Read full report on Journalism at UO

#23

Whitworth University

Spokane, Washington

Whitworth University landed the #23 spot on the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Whitworth University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Spokane, Washington. The school has a small population, and it awarded 2 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Whitworth University is $17,565 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

The 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 Journalism at Whitworth

#24

Gonzaga University

Spokane, Washington

Gonzaga University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #24. Spokane, Washington is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 29 students in 2019-2020.

Gonzaga not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Journalism Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Gonzaga University is $23,389 for far western us region bachelor’s degree journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Journalism at Gonzaga University

#25

Humboldt State University

Arcata, California

Humboldt State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Journalism Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #25. This medium-sized school is located in Arcata, California, and it awarded 37 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Humboldt State University is $11,263 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Journalism students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Journalism at Humboldt State University

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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 Jfurrer.

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