2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in Missouri

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Area Studies is the 106th most popular major in the country with 6,820 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. 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 Missouri, there were 130 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,000 and $26,424 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 112 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,837 and $25,380 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer 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.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the area studies 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 Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k” 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. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 3 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in Missouri

#1

Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, Missouri

#1 in overall quality

$11,832 Average Net Price

$50,465 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Washington University in St Louis. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k list. This fairly large school is located in Saint Louis, Missouri, and it awarded 29 bachelors’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at WUSTL, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Missouri” ranking. The yearly cost to attend WUSTL is $11,832 for missouri bachelor’s degree area studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read more about Area Studies at Washington University in St Louis

#2

University of Missouri - Columbia

Columbia, Missouri

#2 in overall quality

$13,145 Average Net Price

$38,649 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Missouri - Columbia. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k. Located in Columbia, Missouri, this large public school awarded 76 degrees to qualified bachelors’s area studies students in 2019-2020.

Mizzou also took the #2 spot in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Missouri” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Missouri - Columbia is $13,145 for missouri bachelor’s degree area studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

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 student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Missouri - Columbia Area Studies Report

#3

Saint Louis University

Saint Louis, Missouri

#3 in overall quality

$23,734 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Saint Louis University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Missouri For Those Making $48-$75k list. SLU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SLU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Missouri” list. It costs about $23,734 for Missouri Bachelor’s Degree Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Saint Louis University.

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 school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full SLU Area Studies Report

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in the Plains States Region
• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k)

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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