2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. 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 Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Liberal Arts General Studies is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 1st of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 559,661 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2017-2018, liberal arts general studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $26,786 and had an average of $16,538 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southwest region, there were 78,664 liberal arts general studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $27,829 and $15,343 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 25 liberal arts general studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $71,970 and $95,025 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer a degree in liberal arts general studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great liberal arts general 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 liberal arts general studies program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for 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. 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 Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 3 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts General Studies (Income $0-$30k) in the Southwest Region

#1

The University of Texas at Dallas

Richardson, Texas

#2 in overall quality

$28,610 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$52,107 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas at Dallas landed the #1 spot on the list. The University of Texas at Dallas is located in Richardson, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 20 doctorate’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.

UT Dallas did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UT Dallas are $28,610.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at UT Dallas

#2

New Mexico State University - Main Campus

Las Cruces, New Mexico

#3 in overall quality

$18,275 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New Mexico State University - Main Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and it awarded 2 doctorate’s liberal arts degrees in 2019-2020.

NMSU Main Campus also took the #3 spot in our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at New Mexico State University - Main Campus are $18,275, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full NMSU Main Campus Liberal Arts General Studies Report

#3

Southern Methodist University

Dallas, Texas

#1 in overall quality

$47,478 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Methodist University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Liberal Arts Schools for a Doctorate in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Southern Methodist University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Dallas, Texas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 3 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SMU also made our “Best Liberal Arts General Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #1. Average graduate tuition and fees at Southern Methodist University are $47,478, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at SMU

• Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts General Studies (Income $0-$30k)

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.

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