2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 6,820 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 106th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,734 and had an average of $23,024 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 335 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,400 and $23,969 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 24 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,438 and $39,783 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 4 colleges that offered a degree in area studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent area studies programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the area studies program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region master’s degree area studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 4 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k) in the Plains States Region

#1

Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, Missouri

#1 in overall quality

$56,562 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Washington University in St Louis landed the #1 spot on the list. Washington University in St Louis is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Saint Louis, Missouri. It awarded 6 masters’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

WUSTL also made our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #1. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Washington University in St Louis are $56,562.

Full WUSTL Area Studies Report

#2

Saint Louis University

Saint Louis, Missouri

#3 in overall quality

$22,074 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Saint Louis University landed the #2 spot on the list. SLU is located in Saint Louis, Missouri and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 5 masters’s area studies degrees to qualified students.

SLU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Saint Louis University are $22,074, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Area Studies at Saint Louis University

#3

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa

$27,613 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Iowa City, Iowa, and it awarded 3 masters’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #0 spot in our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Iowa are $27,613, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Area Studies at University of Iowa

#4

University of Kansas

Lawrence, Kansas

#2 in overall quality

$25,007 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Kansas. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Master’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Kansas is a public institution located in Lawrence, Kansas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at KU, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Area Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at KU are $25,007, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Area Studies at KU

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k)

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 Karl Udo Gerth.

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