2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astrophysics (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Astrophysics is the 671st most popular major in the country with 383 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across the Southwest region, there were 27 astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 19 astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,896 and $23,899 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking analyzed 3 colleges that offered a degree in astrophysics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent astrophysics programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the astrophysics program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. 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 Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k

The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region bachelor’s degree astrophysical sciences students whose families make $75-$110k.

Top 3 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astrophysics (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region

#1

University of New Mexico - Main Campus

Albuquerque, New Mexico

#3 in overall quality

$18,920 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of New Mexico - Main Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k list. This large school is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UNM not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $18,920 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend UNM.

Read full report on Astrophysics at University of New Mexico - Main Campus

#2

University of Oklahoma Norman Campus

Norman, Oklahoma

#2 in overall quality

$24,730 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Oklahoma Norman Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k list. University of Oklahoma is a large public school situated in Norman, Oklahoma. It awarded 9 bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

University of Oklahoma did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Oklahoma is $24,730 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $75-$110k.

The low student loan default rate of 4.7% 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 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full University of Oklahoma Norman Campus Astrophysics Report

#3

Baylor University

Waco, Texas

#1 in overall quality

$35,300 Average Net Price

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Astrophysical Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southwest Region For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, Baylor University landed the #3 spot on the list. Waco, Texas is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s astrophysical sciences degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.

Baylor not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Astrophysics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Baylor is $35,300 for Southwest Region Bachelor’s Degree Astrophysical Sciences students whose families make $75-$110k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Astrophysics at Baylor

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Astrophysics (Income $75-$110k)

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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