College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2025 Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools

67 Colleges in the United States
3,649 Bachelor's Degrees
$35,678 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your bachelor's degree in area studies, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #85 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

College Factual reviewed 67 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of area studies. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,649 bachelor's degrees in area studies during the <nil> academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Area Studies School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools The area studies bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality area studies program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for area studies students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Area Studies Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Area Studies in the United States

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in area studies. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

13 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in Area Studies

1
Dartmouth crest
Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH

Dartmouth College is a great option for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in area studies. Dartmouth is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit college located in the town of Hanover.

Those area studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College receive $12,887 more than the typical area studies grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Dartmouth College

2

Columbia University in the City of New York is a great decision for students interested in a bachelor's degree in area studies. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Those area studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Columbia University in the City of New York earn $5,801 more than the standard area studies student.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Columbia University in the City of New York

3
Brown crest
Brown University
Providence, RI

Brown University is a great decision for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in area studies. Located in the city of Providence, Brown is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Area Studies bachelor's degree recipients from Brown University earn a boost of about $3,487 over the average earnings of area studies graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Brown University

4

University of California - Berkeley is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in area studies. UC Berkeley is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley.

Area Studies bachelor's degree recipients from University of California - Berkeley get an earnings boost of about $15,050 over the typical earnings of area studies graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of California - Berkeley

5
Wellesley crest
Wellesley College
Wellesley, MA

Located in the suburb of Wellesley, Wellesley is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Those area studies students who get their bachelor's degree from Wellesley College make $7,553 more than the standard area studies graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Wellesley College

6
Yale crest
Yale University
New Haven, CT

Located in the midsize city of New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the area studies degree program at Yale University make $19,940 above the typical graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Yale University

7
146 Annual Graduates
$31,955 Median Starting Salary
$28,162 Median Student Debt

UNC Chapel Hill is a very large public university located in the city of Chapel Hill.

Soon after graduation, area studies bachelor's recipients typically make around $31,955 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

8
153 Annual Graduates
$43,668 Median Starting Salary
$22,482 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those area studies students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Washington - Seattle Campus earn $7,990 more than the typical area studies grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

9
Emory crest
Emory University
Atlanta, GA

Located in the city of Atlanta, Emory is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the area studies program make about $33,549 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Emory University

10
Georgetown crest
Georgetown University
Washington, DC
25 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Georgetown University

11

U-M is a fairly large public university located in the city of Ann Arbor.

After graduating, area studies bachelor's recipients typically earn about $28,261 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

12

Located in the small city of Waltham, Brandeis is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the area studies degree program at Brandeis University make $8,070 more than the standard graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Brandeis University

13

Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, WUSTL is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Soon after graduation, area studies bachelor's recipients generally earn an average of $30,716 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in area studies from Washington University in St Louis

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
14 Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME
15 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
16 University of California - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
17 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX
18 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
19 Fordham University Bronx, NY
20 Barnard College New York, NY
21 George Washington University Washington, DC
22 Amherst College Amherst, MA

Area Studies by Region

View the Best Area Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

Area Studies is one of 2 different types of Area, Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies programs to choose from.

Area Studies Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
American U.S. Studies 840
Asian Studies 634
Area Studies, Other 498
East Asian Studies 340
Latin American Studies 283
Near & Middle Eastern Studies 148
African Studies 110
French Studies 109
Russian Studies 76
German Studies 74

Related Major Annual Graduates
Ethnic Studies 4,986
Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies (Other) 34

Notes and References

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options