Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in Minnesota

5 Ranked Colleges
90 Degrees Awarded
Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

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 Minnesota, there were 90 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $25,800 and $20,950 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in area studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great area studies programs and 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. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 5 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $48-$75k) in Minnesota

#1

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, Minnesota

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k. UMN Twin Cities is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 8 ’s area studies degrees to qualified students.

UMN Twin Cities not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Minnesota” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is $12,556 for Minnesota Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Area Studies at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

#2

Carleton College

Northfield, Minnesota

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Carleton College. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k list. Carleton College is a small school located in Northfield, Minnesota that handed out 21 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

Carleton also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in Minnesota” list, coming in at #1. The estimated yearly cost for Carleton College is $16,716 for minnesota area studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low student loan default rate of 1.3% 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%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Area Studies at Carleton College

#3

St Olaf College

Northfield, Minnesota

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend St Olaf College. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k. Northfield, Minnesota is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s area studies degrees to 25 students in 2019-2020.

St. Olaf not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Minnesota” list. The yearly cost to attend St. Olaf is $17,577 for Minnesota Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full St. Olaf Area Studies Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Minnesota - Duluth. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k. Duluth, Minnesota is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s area studies degrees to 4 students in 2019-2020.

UMN Duluth also took the #4 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Minnesota” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Minnesota - Duluth is $12,438 for Minnesota Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Area Studies at University of Minnesota - Duluth

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Minnesota For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Minnesota State University - Mankato landed the #5 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Mankato, Minnesota, and it awarded 2 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

Minnesota State Mankato did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Minnesota” list. It costs about $14,451 for Minnesota Area Studies students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Minnesota State University - Mankato.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Area Studies at Minnesota State University - Mankato

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

Featured Political and Social Sciences Schools

Find Schools Near You