2022 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in the Southwest Region

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 Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Engineering is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 6th of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 200,458 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2017-2018, engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $64,888 and had an average of $23,564 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southwest region, there were 23,743 engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $63,902 and $21,894 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 1,010 engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,605 and $16,886 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent engineering 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 engineering program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 “Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k

The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region associate degree engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Top 5 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in the Southwest Region

#1

Tulsa Community College

Tulsa, Oklahoma

#1 in overall quality

$5,092 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Tulsa Community College. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, this fairly large public school handed out 85 diplomas to qualified associates’s engineering students in 2019-2020.

Tulsa Community College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $5,092 for southwest region associate degree engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Tulsa Community College.

Read more about Engineering at Tulsa Community College

#2

Houston Community College

Houston, Texas

#2 in overall quality

$5,351 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Houston Community College. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. Houston Community College is a large public school situated in Houston, Texas. It awarded 134 associates’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Houston Community College not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Houston Community College is $5,351 for southwest region associate degree engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Engineering at Houston Community College

#3

Austin Community College District

Austin, Texas

#3 in overall quality

$4,362 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Austin Community College District. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. Austin Community College District is a large school located in Austin, Texas that handed out 83 associates’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Austin Community College District did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Austin Community College District is $4,362 for southwest region associate degree engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Engineering at Austin Community College District

#4

Central New Mexico Community College

Albuquerque, New Mexico

#4 in overall quality

$3,626 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Central New Mexico Community College. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k. This large school is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it awarded 46 associates’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at CNM, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for CNM is $3,626 for Southwest Region Associate Degree Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Engineering at Central New Mexico Community College

#5

Northwest Vista College

San Antonio, Texas

#5 in overall quality

$4,906 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwest Vista College. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools for an Associate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $30-$48k list. This fairly large school is located in San Antonio, Texas, and it awarded 14 associates’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwest Vista College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $4,906 for southwest region associate degree engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Northwest Vista College.

Read full report on Engineering at Northwest Vista College

• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k)

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 Petty Officer 3rd Class Declan Barnes.

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