by our College Data Analytics TeamCollege Factual looked at 9 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 616 doctor's degrees in social sciences during the 2022-2023 academic year.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Your choice of social sciences for getting your doctor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To account for this we include a college's overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of doctorate graduates during the early years of their career. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their doctor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for social sciences students working on their doctor's degree.
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 Best Social Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region list to help you make the college decision.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in social sciences.
Duke University is a wonderful decision for individuals pursuing a doctor's degree in social sciences. Duke is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Durham.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from Duke University
It's hard to beat University of Florida if you wish to pursue a doctor's degree in social sciences. UF is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from University of Florida
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a good decision for students pursuing a doctor's degree in social sciences. Located in the small city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Any student pursuing a degree in a doctor's degree in social sciences needs to check out Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Blacksburg.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from Virginia Tech
Located in the city of Tampa, USF Tampa is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from University of South Florida - Main Campus
UGA is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Athens.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from University of Georgia
Located in the large suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from George Mason University
Georgia State is a very large public university located in the city of Atlanta.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from Georgia State University
Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in social sciences from North Carolina State University
Explore the best social sciences colleges for a specific state in the Southeast Region .
| State | Colleges | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | 29 | 106 |
| Virginia | 29 | 85 |
| Georgia | 28 | 73 |
| Mississippi | 28 | 17 |
| South Carolina | 28 | 25 |
| North Carolina | 26 | 93 |
| Kentucky | 26 | 34 |
| Alabama | 25 | 17 |
| Tennessee | 25 | 41 |
| Louisiana | 25 | 31 |
| Arkansas | 23 | 2 |
| West Virginia | 20 | 12 |
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Economics | 186 |
| Sociology | 109 |
| Political Science & Government | 109 |
| Anthropology | 82 |
| Geography & Cartography | 62 |
| International Relations & National Security | 31 |
| Urban Studies | 18 |
| General Social Sciences | 4 |
| Other Social Sciences | 3 |
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Theology & Religious Vocations | 1,305 |
| English Language & Literature | 280 |
| Communication & Journalism | 200 |
| History | 166 |
| Philosophy & Religious Studies | 142 |
| Foreign Languages & Linguistics | 136 |
| Family, Consumer & Human Sciences | 57 |
| Area, Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies | 20 |
| Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities | 20 |
