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2025 Best Social Sciences Schools in North Carolina

18 Colleges in North Carolina
5,168 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
$40,688 Avg Early-Career Salary
Social Sciences is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #5 most popular degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 18 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Social Sciences Schools in North Carolina ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 5,168 degrees in social sciences annually.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Social Sciences School

Best Social Sciences Schools in North Carolina Your choice of social sciences school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Social Sciences School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Social Sciences Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Social Sciences
Master's Degrees in Social Sciences
Doctor's Degrees in Social Sciences

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 Schools in North Carolina list to help you make the college decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

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. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Social Sciences in North Carolina

The schools below may not offer all types of social sciences degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top North Carolina Schools in Social Sciences

1
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
532 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
0.4% Growth in Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in social sciences needs to look into Duke University. Located in the city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #7 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Duke is a great university overall.

There were roughly 532 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at Duke in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the social sciences major at Duke University get $38,963 more than the standard college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in social sciences from Duke University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,082 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
5.5% Growth in Graduates

It is hard to beat University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill if you want to pursue a degree in social sciences. UNC Chapel Hill is a very large public university located in the small city of Chapel Hill. A Best Colleges rank of #38 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UNC Chapel Hill is a great university overall.

There were about 1082 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at UNC Chapel Hill in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the social sciences degree program at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill make $9,031 above the standard graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in social sciences from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

3
Wake Forest University crest
Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem, NC
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
315 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
8.3% Growth in Graduates

Wake Forest University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in social sciences. Wake Forest University is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Winston-Salem. A Best Colleges rank of #76 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Wake Forest University is a great university overall.

There were approximately 315 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at Wake Forest University in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the social sciences degree program at Wake Forest University earn $10,589 more than the standard college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in social sciences from Wake Forest University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
450 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
$33,045 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of North Carolina at Charlotte if you want to pursue a degree in social sciences. Located in the large city of Charlotte, UNC Charlotte is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #367 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UNC Charlotte is a great university overall.

There were approximately 450 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at UNC Charlotte in the most recent data year. After graduating, social sciences degree recipients typically make about $33,045 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in social sciences from University of North Carolina at Charlotte

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
469 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
4.5% Growth in Graduates

NC State is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Raleigh. A Best Colleges rank of #122 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means NC State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 469 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at NC State in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, social sciences degree recipients usually earn around $37,889 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in social sciences from North Carolina State University

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
149 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
16.8% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of Elon, Elon is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #190 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Elon is a great university overall.

There were approximately 149 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at Elon in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the social sciences program earn an average of $38,836 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in social sciences from Elon University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
233 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
$32,008 Median Starting Salary

Located in the midsize city of Wilmington, UNCW is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #415 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UNCW is a great university overall.

There were roughly 233 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at UNCW in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, social sciences degree recipients usually make about $32,008 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in social sciences from University of North Carolina at Wilmington

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
276 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
$28,022 Median Starting Salary

UNC Greensboro is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Greensboro. This university ranks 17th out of 93 schools for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were roughly 276 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at UNC Greensboro in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the social sciences program report average early career wages of $28,022.

More information about a degree in social sciences from University of North Carolina at Greensboro

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
277 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
$30,112 Median Starting Salary

Located in the distant town of Boone, Appalachian State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #401 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Appalachian State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 277 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at Appalachian State in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the social sciences program state that they receive average early career earnings of $30,112.

More information about a degree in social sciences from Appalachian State University

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
157 Social Sciences Degrees Awarded
1.3% Growth in Graduates

UNC Pembroke is a medium-sized public university located in the distant town of Pembroke. This university ranks 48th out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were about 157 social sciences students who graduated with this degree at UNC Pembroke in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the social sciences program report average early career earnings of $32,169.

More information about a degree in social sciences from University of North Carolina at Pembroke

Best Social Sciences Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Social Sciences Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
West Virginia 38 783
Mississippi 38 722
South Carolina 38 1,873
Florida 38 8,144
Virginia 38 7,557
Arkansas 38 895
Alabama 37 1,604
Kentucky 37 1,324
Georgia 37 3,895
Tennessee 37 2,193
Louisiana 37 1,518

View All Rankings >

Social Sciences Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 1,761
Economics 1,297
Sociology 992
Anthropology 424
Geography & Cartography 265
General Social Sciences 125
International Relations & National Security 88
Sociology & Anthropology 13
Archeology 8

View All Social Sciences Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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