by our College Data Analytics TeamCollege Factual looked at 79 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Education Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 12,984 master's degrees in education during the 2022-2023 academic year.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Your choice of education for getting your master's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality education program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we include a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for education students working on their master's degree.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Education Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for education students seeking a a master's degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
It's difficult to beat University of Minnesota - Twin Cities if you want to pursue a master's degree in education. UMN Twin Cities is a fairly large public university located in the city of Minneapolis.More information about a master’s in education from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
University of St Thomas Minnesota is a wonderful choice for students pursuing a master's degree in education. UST MN is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Saint Paul.More information about a master’s in education from University of St Thomas Minnesota
University of Missouri - Columbia is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a master's degree in education. Located in the midsize city of Columbia, Mizzou is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in education from University of Missouri - Columbia
Kansas State University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a master's degree in education. Located in the city of Manhattan, K -State is a public university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in education from Kansas State University
Hamline is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Saint Paul.More information about a master’s in education from Hamline University
Iowa State is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Ames.More information about a master’s in education from Iowa State University
Located in the city of Lincoln, UNL is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in education from University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Mankato.More information about a master’s in education from Minnesota State University - Mankato
UND is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Grand Forks.More information about a master’s in education from University of North Dakota
Located in the small city of Saint Cloud, St. Cloud State University is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in education from Saint Cloud State University
Located in the town of Winona, Winona State is a public university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a master’s in education from Winona State University
Located in the city of Lawrence, KU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in education from University of Kansas
Valley City State University is a small public university located in the remote town of Valley City.More information about a master’s in education from Valley City State University
Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, UMSL is a public university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in education from University of Missouri - St Louis
Located in the large city of Saint Louis, SLU is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in education from Saint Louis University
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Education Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Southwest Minnesota State University | Marshall, MN |
| 17 | Northwestern College | Orange City, IA |
| 18 | University of Iowa | Iowa City, IA |
| 19 | Drake University | Des Moines, IA |
| 20 | The College of Saint Scholastica | Duluth, MN |
| 21 | Missouri State University - Springfield | Springfield, MO |
| 22 | Dordt University | Sioux Center, IA |
| 23 | Northwest Missouri State University | Maryville, MO |
| 24 | Pittsburg State University | Pittsburg, KS |
| 25 | Emporia State University | Emporia, KS |
| 26 | University of South Dakota | Vermillion, SD |
Explore the best education schools for a specific state in the Plains States Region .
| State | Colleges | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Missouri | 32 | 3,542 |
| Minnesota | 31 | 4,677 |
| Kansas | 30 | 2,604 |
| Iowa | 29 | 1,254 |
| Nebraska | 29 | 2,343 |
| North Dakota | 28 | 522 |
| South Dakota | 25 | 428 |
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Educational Administration | 2,286 |
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 2,120 |
| General Education | 1,912 |
| Curriculum & Instruction | 1,827 |
| Student Counseling | 1,465 |
| Special Education | 1,417 |
| Teacher Education Subject Specific | 1,145 |
| Instructional Media Design | 414 |
| Teaching English or French | 182 |
| Other Education | 153 |
