2022 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Social Sciences in the Great Lakes Region
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.
Social Sciences is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 5th of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 205,726 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2017-2018, social sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $34,801 and had an average of $23,466 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Great Lakes region, there were 22,091 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,186 and $24,310 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 582 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $74,428 and $121,375 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region” ranking looked at 23 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. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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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 a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region” list to help you make the college decision.
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Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region doctor’s degree social sciences students.
Top 26 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Social Sciences in the Great Lakes Region
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. UW - Madison is a public institution located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school has a large population, and it awarded 69 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UW - Madison also took the #5 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UW - Madison are $25,523, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Full University of Wisconsin - Madison Social Sciences Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bowling Green State University - Main Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. BGSU is a public institution located in Bowling Green, Ohio. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.
BGSU also made our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #14. Average graduate tuition and fees at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus are $15,823, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus
Out of the 23 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Northern Illinois University landed the #3 spot on the list. Northern Illinois University is a fairly large public school situated in Dekalb, Illinois. It awarded 4 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
NIU also took the #22 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Northern Illinois University are $11,086.
Out of the 23 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Loyola University Chicago landed the #4 spot on the list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 9 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Loyola Chicago, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Loyola Chicago are $19,154.
Out of the 23 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #5 spot on the list. This large school is located in West Lafayette, Indiana, and it awarded 17 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Purdue also made our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #11. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Purdue University - Main Campus are $28,794.
University of Akron Main Campus ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Akron Main Campus is a public institution located in Akron, Ohio. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.
University of Akron Main Campus also made our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #21. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Akron Main Campus are $15,217, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read more about Social Sciences at University of Akron Main Campus
Indiana State University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Indiana State is located in Terre Haute, Indiana and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 1 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Indiana State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #24 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Indiana State are $15,346.
With a ranking of #7, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. UIUC is a large public school situated in Champaign, Illinois. It awarded 44 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social sciences students list, UIUC has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are $30,083, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read more about Social Sciences at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Indiana University - Bloomington did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #8. Indiana University - Bloomington is a large school located in Bloomington, Indiana that handed out 50 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
IU Bloomington also took the #6 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Indiana University - Bloomington are $33,338, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Indiana University - Bloomington
University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #9. University of Illinois at Chicago is a large public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 25 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
UIC also made our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #13. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UIC are $27,036.
Kent State University at Kent did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #10. This large school is located in Kent, Ohio, and it awarded 12 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social sciences students list, Kent State has also earned the #19 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Kent State University at Kent are $21,952, but some majors have different tuition rates.
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. UWM is a large school located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that handed out 13 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UWM, the school also landed the #18 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee are $25,295.
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is located in Cincinnati, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 7 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UC are $26,644, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Cleveland State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #12. Cleveland State University is located in Cleveland, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Cleveland State University are $17,622.
Western Michigan University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, this fairly large public school awarded 5 degrees to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.
WMU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #15 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Western Michigan University are $31,355.
Read more about Social Sciences at Western Michigan University
With a ranking of #14, Michigan State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in East Lansing, Michigan, this large public school awarded 33 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.
Michigan State also took the #9 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Michigan State University are $37,056, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #15. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, this large public school awarded 1 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.
IUPUI also took the #21 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis are $26,013, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis
Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #15. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 20 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.
SIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at SIUC are $32,928, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Toledo came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Toledo is located in Toledo, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 3 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our great lakes region doctor’s degree social sciences students list, University of Toledo has also earned the #23 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Toledo are $27,067, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Ohio State University - Main Campus landed the #17 spot on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ohio State University - Main Campus is located in Columbus, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 40 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
Ohio State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Ohio State are $37,141, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Ohio State University - Main Campus
Wayne State University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Detroit, Michigan, this large public school handed out 17 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.
Wayne State also made our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #20. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Wayne State are $37,215.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a public institution located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 55 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.
U-M also took the #4 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at U-M are $49,548, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Full University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Social Sciences Report
With a ranking of #20, Case Western Reserve University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region list. Cleveland, Ohio is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s social sciences degrees to 5 students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Case Western, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Case Western are $47,958, but some majors have different tuition rates.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University
University of Notre Dame did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #21. University of Notre Dame is located in Notre Dame, Indiana and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 21 doctorate’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Notre Dame, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Notre Dame are $57,522, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
Northwestern University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This large school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 47 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
Northwestern also took the #1 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Northwestern University are $56,567, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
University of Chicago did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Doctorate in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #23. This fairly large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 71 doctorate’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.
UChicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Social Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at UChicago are $61,548, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.
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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 AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.
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