2023 Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking.

Library & Information Science is the 121st most popular major in the country with 5,950 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, library and information science graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $43,949 and had an average of $27,472 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 365 library and information science graduates with average earnings and debt of $41,760 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, we looked at 4 colleges that offer a degree in library and information science. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality library and information science programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the library and information science 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.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The library science school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k”.

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 Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Library & Information Science (Income $48-$75k) in the Plains States Region

1

Emporia State University
Emporia, Kansas

#1 in overall quality

$15,070 Average Net Price

$40,991 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Emporia State University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k. ESU is a public institution located in Emporia, Kansas. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 165 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our plains states region library science students whose families make $48-$75k list, ESU has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $15,070 for Plains States Region Library Science students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Emporia State University.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Library & Information Science at ESU

2

University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa

#2 in overall quality

$18,026 Average Net Price

$50,430 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. Iowa City, Iowa is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s library science degrees to 33 students in 2020-2021.

Iowa also made our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #2. It costs about $18,026 for plains states region library science students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend University of Iowa.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. 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%.

Read full report on Library & Information Science at Iowa

3

University of Central Missouri
Warrensburg, Missouri

#3 in overall quality

$14,267 Average Net Price

$41,823 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Central Missouri landed the #3 spot on the list. UCM is a public institution located in Warrensburg, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 25 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

UCM did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $14,267 for Plains States Region Library Science students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UCM.

Read more about Library & Information Science at University of Central Missouri

4

St Catherine University
Saint Paul, Minnesota

#4 in overall quality

$15,942 Average Net Price

$53,926 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend St Catherine University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Library Science Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k. This small school is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and it awarded 33 ’s library science degrees in 2020-2021.

St. Kate’s not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Library & Information Science Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The yearly cost to attend St. Kate’s is $15,942 for plains states region library science students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Library & Information Science at St. Kate’s

• Best Value Colleges for Library & Information Science (Income $48-$75k)

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 Diliff.