by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
In 2021-2022, 6,257 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 115th most popular in the United States. In , area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $33,127 and had an average of $22,500 in loans still to pay off.
At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 254 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,735 and $124,256 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major” ranking analyzed 46 colleges that offered a degree in area studies. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their area studies program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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 “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major” list to help you make the college decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for doctor’s degree area studies students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary is a small school located in Fort Worth, Texas that handed out 58 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
Read full report on Area Studies at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Harvard University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Harvard is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school has a large population, and it awarded 29 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Princeton University. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major. Princeton University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Princeton, New Jersey. It awarded 8 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend William & Mary. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major. William & Mary is a medium-sized school located in Williamsburg, Virginia that handed out 6 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.2% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Out of the 46 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Brown University landed the #5 spot on the list. Brown University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Providence, Rhode Island. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 12 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 98%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Howard University ranked #6 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Howard is a private not-for-profit institution located in Washington, District of Columbia. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 3 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Bowling Green State University - Main Campus came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking. Bowling Green, Ohio is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 8 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% 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%.
Brandeis University ranked #8 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Brandeis University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Waltham, Massachusetts. It awarded 41 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
University of New Mexico - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #9. This large school is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it awarded 21 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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 University of New Mexico - Main Campus Area Studies Report
Tulane University of Louisiana did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #10. Tulane is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in New Orleans, Louisiana. It awarded 4 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Arizona came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking. University of Arizona is located in Tucson, Arizona and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 3 doctorate’s area studies degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #12, Rutgers University - Newark did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Rutgers Newark is a fairly large public school situated in Newark, New Jersey. It awarded 3 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #13, Yale University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Yale University is a private not-for-profit institution located in New Haven, Connecticut. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 98%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
University of Hawaii at Manoa did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #14. UH Manoa is a fairly large public school situated in Honolulu, Hawaii. It awarded 3 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
The University of Texas at Austin came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking. Austin, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 11 students in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Stanford University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #16. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 3 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.2% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 98%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #17 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. U-M is a large school located in Ann Arbor, Michigan that handed out 3 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.2% 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%.
New York University landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking. New York, New York is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 11 students in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
With a ranking of #19, Boston University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Boston U is a large school located in Boston, Massachusetts that handed out 6 doctorate’s area studies degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.5% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Indiana University - Bloomington came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking. Indiana University - Bloomington is located in Bloomington, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 8 doctorate’s area studies degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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%.
University at Buffalo did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #21. University at Buffalo is a public institution located in Buffalo, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 2 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad 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%.
With a ranking of #22, Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major list. Purdue University - Main Campus is a public institution located in West Lafayette, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1 doctorate’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%.
Saint Louis University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking. Saint Louis, Missouri is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 2 students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.
University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #24. Minneapolis, Minnesota is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s area studies degrees to 3 students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Cornell University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Area Studies Major ranking, coming in at #25. Located in Ithaca, New York, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 1 degrees to qualified doctorate’s area studies students in 2021-2022.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies