2025 Best Area Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region
8Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
704Area Studies Degrees Awarded
$36,713Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in area studies, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #115 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 8 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for area studies students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 704 degrees in area studies annually.
Explore societal similarities and differences as seen through cultural, biological, archaeological and linguistic lenses when you earn one of your degrees in anthropology from Southern New Hampshire University.
The area studies program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Area Studies rankings. For our Best Overall Area Studies School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.
You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Area Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.
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.
Explore societal similarities and differences as seen through cultural, biological, archaeological and linguistic lenses when you earn one of your degrees in anthropology from Southern New Hampshire University.
Best Schools for Area Studies in the Great Lakes Region
If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the area studies degrees they offer, see the list below.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in area studies. U-M is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor. A Best Colleges rank of #22 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.
There were roughly 46 area studies students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the area studies program report average early career income of $30,213.
University of Notre Dame is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in area studies. Located in the large suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Notre Dame is a great university overall.
There were approximately 22 area studies students who graduated with this degree at Notre Dame in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, area studies degree recipients generally earn about $35,304 in their early careers.
Explore societal similarities and differences as seen through cultural, biological, archaeological and linguistic lenses when you earn one of your degrees in anthropology from Southern New Hampshire University.
Any student pursuing a degree in area studies needs to take a look at Miami University - Oxford. Miami University - Oxford is a large public university located in the town of Oxford. This university ranks 5th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.
There were about 30 area studies students who graduated with this degree at Miami University - Oxford in the most recent data year. Those area studies students who get their degree from Miami University - Oxford receive $13,924 more than the typical area studies grad.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a good decision for students pursuing a degree in area studies. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 3rd out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.
There were approximately 32 area studies students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the area studies program make about $24,332 for their early career.
Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #40 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.
There were approximately 138 area studies students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent data year.
IU Bloomington is a fairly large public university located in the city of Bloomington. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means IU Bloomington is a great university overall.
There were approximately 32 area studies students who graduated with this degree at IU Bloomington in the most recent data year.
Located in the town of Oberlin, Oberlin is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 17th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.
There were about 35 area studies students who graduated with this degree at Oberlin in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the area studies program report average early career wages of $20,905.
Gain a rich foundation of knowledge ranging from early history to modern times with this online bachelor's degree in history from Southern New Hampshire University.
UIC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Chicago. This university ranks 10th out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.
There were roughly 23 area studies students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent year we have data available.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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 the rest 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).
Credit for the banner image above goes to Karl Udo Gerth.
The area studies program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Area Studies rankings. For our Best Overall Area Studies School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.
