2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $75-$110k) in Maryland

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 Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k” 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 Maryland, there were 151 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,500 and $22,237 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 117 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,371 and $23,982 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s 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.

More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools

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 Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique 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 Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k.

Top 3 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $75-$110k) in Maryland

#1

University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, Maryland

#1 in overall quality

$22,710 Average Net Price

$41,565 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Maryland - College Park. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k. This large school is located in College Park, Maryland, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

UMCP also made our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $22,710 for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend University of Maryland - College Park.

With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%.

Full UMCP Area Studies Report

#2

Towson University

Towson, Maryland

#3 in overall quality

$22,972 Average Net Price

$46,790 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Towson University. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k list. Located in Towson, Maryland, this large public school handed out 12 degrees to qualified bachelors’s area studies students in 2019-2020.

Towson did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” list. It costs about $22,972 for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Towson.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Area Studies at Towson

#3

University of Maryland - Baltimore County

Baltimore, Maryland

#4 in overall quality

$23,922 Average Net Price

$28,236 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Maryland - Baltimore County landed the #3 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Baltimore, Maryland, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students whose families make $75-$110k list, UMBC has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” ranking. It costs about $23,922 for Maryland Bachelor’s Degree Area Studies students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend University of Maryland - Baltimore County.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Area Studies at UMBC

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $75-$110k) in the Middle Atlantic Region
• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies (Income $75-$110k)

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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