2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k
646
Ranked Colleges
205,984
Degrees Awarded
$4,100
Avg Net Price*
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 205,984 social sciences students received their degree, making the major the 5th most popular in the country. In 2019-2020, social sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $36,262 and had an average of $23,306 in loans still to pay off.
This year’s “Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 646 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social sciences. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent social sciences programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the social sciences program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
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 Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k
The colleges and universities below are the best for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
Top 26 Best Value Colleges for Social Sciences (Income $30-$48k)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Duke University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k. Located in Durham, North Carolina, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 530 degrees to qualified ’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
Duke also took the #2 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Duke University is $-927 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k. The negative number means the student will receive more financial aid on average than it costs to attend the school.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Social Sciences at Duke University
Out of the 646 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Yale University landed the #2 spot on the list. New Haven, Connecticut is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s social sciences degrees to 528 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, Yale has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Yale University is $3,083 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Yale
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Stanford University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k. This fairly large school is located in Stanford, California, and it awarded 357 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, Stanford has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Stanford University is $1,581 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Stanford University Social Sciences Report
Out of the 646 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Harvard University landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 871 diplomas to qualified ’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
Harvard did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #12 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Harvard is $1,396 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Harvard
Out of the 646 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Chicago landed the #5 spot on the list. UChicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,278 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k list, UChicago has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UChicago is $4,777 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an impressive undergrad 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 100%. The undergraduate 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.
Full University of Chicago Social Sciences Report
Princeton University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Princeton is a private not-for-profit institution located in Princeton, New Jersey. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 349 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Princeton, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Princeton is $4,502 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full Princeton University Social Sciences Report
Williams College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Williams is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It awarded 156 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Williams did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #18 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Williams College is $5,480 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The impressive undergraduate 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.
Full Williams College Social Sciences Report
Northwestern University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Evanston, Illinois, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 663 diplomas to qualified ’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Northwestern, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern University is $917 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
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 impressive undergraduate 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. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Northwestern Social Sciences Report
University of Pennsylvania came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. UPenn is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 642 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
UPenn did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for UPenn is $1,938 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The impressive undergraduate 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. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Pennsylvania
With a ranking of #10, Columbia University in the City of New York did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Columbia is a large school located in New York, New York that handed out 1,314 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Columbia also took the #16 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Columbia University in the City of New York is $4,699 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Columbia University in the City of New York
With a ranking of #11, Vanderbilt University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Nashville, Tennessee is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s social sciences degrees to 705 students in 2020-2021.
Vanderbilt did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Vanderbilt University is $4,652 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad 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%.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Vanderbilt University
Dartmouth College ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Dartmouth College is a medium-sized school located in Hanover, New Hampshire that handed out 450 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Dartmouth not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #21 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Dartmouth is $8,718 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Dartmouth
Johns Hopkins University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Johns Hopkins University is located in Baltimore, Maryland and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,364 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Johns Hopkins did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Johns Hopkins University is $4,859 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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 undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%.
Read more about Social Sciences at Johns Hopkins
Washington and Lee University landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Washington and Lee is located in Lexington, Virginia and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 138 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Washington and Lee excels when it comes to social sciences quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It costs about $850 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Washington and Lee.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate 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. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Social Sciences at Washington and Lee University
Claremont McKenna College landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Claremont McKenna is located in Claremont, California and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 179 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Claremont McKenna also made our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list, coming in at #11. It costs about $8,693 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Claremont McKenna College.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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 undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Social Sciences at Claremont McKenna College
With a ranking of #16, Washington University in St Louis did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Saint Louis, Missouri is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s social sciences degrees to 375 students in 2020-2021.
WUSTL also made our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list, coming in at #20. It costs about $2,446 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Washington University in St Louis.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, 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 94%.
Read more about Social Sciences at Washington University in St Louis
Brown University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Providence, Rhode Island, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 419 degrees to qualified ’s social sciences students in 2020-2021.
Brown did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It costs about $2,842 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Brown.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad 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%.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Brown
With a ranking of #18, Rice University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Rice is located in Houston, Texas and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 266 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Rice not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It costs about $1,340 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Rice.
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 school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read more about Social Sciences at Rice
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. U-M is a public institution located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,247 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
U-M excels when it comes to social sciences quality. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend U-M is $5,670 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Cornell University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Cornell is located in Ithaca, New York and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 523 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Cornell also took the #15 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Cornell University is $5,133 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Cornell University
Tufts University ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. Tufts is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Medford, Massachusetts. It awarded 877 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
Tufts did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #24 on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It costs about $7,987 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Tufts University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% 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 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Tufts Social Sciences Report
University of Florida landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. University of Florida is a large public school situated in Gainesville, Florida. It awarded 1,318 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on this list, UF is in the top on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Florida is $2,857 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Social Sciences at University of Florida
Amherst College landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Amherst College is located in Amherst, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 87 ’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Amherst also did well on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend Amherst College is $4,459 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full Amherst Social Sciences Report
With a ranking of #24, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a large public school situated in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It awarded 1,022 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UNC Chapel Hill excels when it comes to social sciences quality. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. It costs about $5,729 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Social Sciences at UNC Chapel Hill
Colby College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #25. Colby College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Waterville, Maine. The school has a small population, and it awarded 177 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Colby also claimed a top spot on our “Best Social Sciences Schools” list. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend Colby College is $2,361 for social sciences students whose families make $30-$48k.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Colby College
University of California - Berkeley did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #25. UC Berkeley is a large public school situated in Berkeley, California. It awarded 2,093 ’s social sciences degrees in 2020-2021.
UC Berkeley also took the #13 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Schools” ranking. It costs about $9,999 for Social Sciences students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend UC Berkeley.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of California - Berkeley Social Sciences Report
Rest of the Best 49 in Best Value Social Sciences Schools For Those Making $30-$48k
Not only did these schools make the top 49 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
