2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Economics (With Aid)
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Economics is the 18th most popular major in the country with 48,831 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, economics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $47,295 and had an average of $21,978 in loans still to pay off.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 40,046 economics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 603 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in economics. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality economics 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 economics program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid
The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Economics (With Aid)
Out of the 603 schools in the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill landed the #1 spot on the list. Chapel Hill, North Carolina is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s economics degrees to 409 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UNC Chapel Hill is also in the top of our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend UNC Chapel Hill is $12,352 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low student loan default rate of 1.9% 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 Economics at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Yale University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid. Yale is a fairly large school located in New Haven, Connecticut that handed out 198 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
Yale not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Yale University is $17,549 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Harvard University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Harvard University is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 215 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
Harvard also took the #8 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $15,386 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid per year to attend Harvard.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Florida. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid. Gainesville, Florida is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s economics degrees to 319 students in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, UF also did well on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend UF is $6,302 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
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 student loan default rate of 2.0% 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%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Baruch College. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid. Baruch is located in New York, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 70 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
The yearly cost to attend Baruch is $3,562 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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 of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Seattle, Washington, this large public school handed out 312 degrees to qualified bachelors’s economics students in 2019-2020.
UW Seattle also claimed a top spot on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend UW Seattle is $13,297 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Washington - Seattle Campus Economics Report
With a ranking of #7, Hunter College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Located in New York, New York, this large public school awarded 143 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s economics students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $2,490 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid per year to attend Hunter.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #8, Princeton University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. This medium-sized school is located in Princeton, New Jersey, and it awarded 126 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
Princeton also took the #11 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Princeton University is $11,317 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low student loan default rate of 0.9% 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 #9, Queens College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. QC is a fairly large school located in Queens, New York that handed out 383 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $3,067 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid per year to attend Queens College.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #10, Claremont McKenna College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Claremont McKenna College is a small school located in Claremont, California that handed out 118 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Claremont McKenna, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Claremont McKenna is $22,161 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The 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.
John Jay College of Criminal Justice did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #11. John Jay College of Criminal Justice is located in New York, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 47 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for John Jay is $2,532 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
Read full report on Economics at John Jay College of Criminal Justice
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 490 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UIUC also claimed a top spot on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend UIUC is $15,880 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Economics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Williams College ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Williams College is located in Williamstown, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 108 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Williams, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Williams College is $19,480 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The impressive 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.
Stanford University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Stanford University is located in Stanford, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 90 bachelors’s economics degrees to qualified students.
Stanford did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Stanford is $11,496 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
California State University - Los Angeles landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 23 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend California State University - Los Angeles is $2,768 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Wisconsin - Madison is a public institution located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school has a large population, and it awarded 566 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on this list, UW - Madison is in the top on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for University of Wisconsin - Madison is $17,708 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
The low 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.
University of California - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #17. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 824 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, UCLA also did well on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Los Angeles is $14,279 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.
The City College of New York landed the #18 spot on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. New York, New York is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s economics degrees to 84 students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $2,385 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid per year to attend CCNY.
Read full report on Economics at The City College of New York
With a ranking of #19, Amherst College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. This small school is located in Amherst, Massachusetts, and it awarded 74 bachelors’s economics degrees in 2019-2020.
Amherst not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #17 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Amherst is $18,524 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #20 spot on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a public institution located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 586 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
On top of its placing in this ranking, U-M also did well on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category. The estimated yearly cost for U-M is $15,336 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Rice University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Rice University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Houston, Texas. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 86 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Rice not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #18 on our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $16,999 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid per year to attend Rice University.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 1.0% 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%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Brigham Young University - Provo came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Provo, Utah, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 216 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s economics students in 2019-2020.
BYU excels when it comes to economics quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for Brigham Young University - Provo is $13,322 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.
York College came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Jamaica, New York is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s economics degrees to 16 students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend York College is $3,433 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
With a ranking of #24, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. University of California - Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 751 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Berkeley, the school also landed the #22 spot in our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $15,329 for bachelor’s degree economics students with aid per year to attend University of California - Berkeley.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at University of California - Berkeley
Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #25. West Lafayette, Indiana is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s economics degrees to 107 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Purdue is also in the top of our “Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for Purdue is $13,986 for Bachelor’s Degree Economics students with aid.
The low 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Rest of the Best 50 in Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Rest of the Top 15% Colleges in Best Value Economics Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid
While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | College of Staten Island CUNY | Staten Island, NY |
| 52 | Farmingdale State College | Farmingdale, NY |
| 52 | Colby College | Waterville, ME |
| 54 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | Rolla, MO |
| 55 | Wellesley College | Wellesley, MA |
| 56 | California State University - Long Beach | Long Beach, CA |
| 57 | University of California - Davis | Davis, CA |
| 58 | University of Maryland - College Park | College Park, MD |
| 59 | Brooklyn College | Brooklyn, NY |
| 60 | University of Minnesota - Morris | Morris, MN |
| 61 | San Diego State University | San Diego, CA |
| 62 | University of Wisconsin - River Falls | River Falls, WI |
| 63 | University of Illinois at Chicago | Chicago, IL |
| 64 | University of Utah | Salt Lake City, UT |
| 65 | William & Mary | Williamsburg, VA |
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 91 | Stony Brook University | Stony Brook, NY |
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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 pixabay.
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