by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region” ranking.
Social Work is the 13th most popular major in the country with 58,923 degrees awarded in 2021-2022. In , social work graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $37,585 and had an average of $29,565 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Southwest region, there were 6,330 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $36,059 and $26,391 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 3,142 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,505 and $37,295 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region” ranking analyzed 29 colleges that offered a degree in social work. That schools that top this list have a program in social work in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. 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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region master’s degree social work students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Our Lady of the Lake University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. OLLU is located in San Antonio, Texas and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 240 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Western New Mexico University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region. Located in Silver City, New Mexico, this small public school awarded 171 degrees to qualified masters’s social work students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.5% 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 more about Social Work at Western New Mexico University
Out of the 29 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas at Arlington landed the #3 spot on the list. The University of Texas at Arlington is a large public school situated in Arlington, Texas. It awarded 596 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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%.
Full The University of Texas at Arlington Social Work Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Baylor University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. Waco, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s social work degrees to 161 students in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stephen F Austin State University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. Stephen F Austin State University is located in Nacogdoches, Texas and, has a fairly large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 74 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #6, Arizona State University - Skysong did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. ASU - Skysong is a large public school situated in Scottsdale, Arizona. It awarded 291 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #7. Norman, Oklahoma is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s social work degrees to 212 students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
New Mexico State University - Main Campus came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking. This fairly large school is located in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and it awarded 47 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Social Work at New Mexico State University - Main Campus
University of Houston did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #9. University of Houston is a public institution located in Houston, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 244 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Texas A&M University - Kingsville came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking. Texas A&M Kingsville is a medium-sized public school situated in Kingsville, Texas. It awarded 23 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #11, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. This large school is located in Edinburg, Texas, and it awarded 146 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Social Work Report
Texas A&M University - Commerce did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #12. Texas A&M University - Commerce is located in Commerce, Texas and, has a fairly large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 67 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.0% 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%.
Read more about Social Work at Texas A&M University - Commerce
Tarleton State University landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking. Tarleton State University is a fairly large public school situated in Stephenville, Texas. It awarded 49 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%.
Read full report on Social Work at Tarleton State University
Northeastern State University ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. Northeastern State University is located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 25 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
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%.
With a ranking of #15, Angelo State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. Angelo State is a public institution located in San Angelo, Texas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 35 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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%.
Abilene Christian University ranked #16 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. Abilene Christian University is located in Abilene, Texas and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 26 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
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%.
Arizona State University - Tempe came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking. ASU - Tempe is a large public school situated in Tempe, Arizona. It awarded 246 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Texas State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #18. Texas State is a large public school situated in San Marcos, Texas. It awarded 85 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad 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%.
The University of Texas at San Antonio ranked #19 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. UTSA is located in San Antonio, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 75 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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%.
Read full report on Social Work at The University of Texas at San Antonio
With a ranking of #20, The University of Texas at Austin did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. UT Austin is located in Austin, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 148 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
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 undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
West Texas A&M University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #21. West Texas A&M University is a medium-sized school located in Canyon, Texas that handed out 12 masters’s social work degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Texas Christian University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in Fort Worth, Texas, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 19 degrees to qualified masters’s social work students in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.5% 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 University of Texas at El Paso ranked #23 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. El Paso, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s social work degrees to 36 students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Northern Arizona University ranked #24 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. NAU is located in Flagstaff, Arizona and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 59 masters’s social work degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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%.
With a ranking of #25, Texas Woman’s University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Social Work Major in the Southwest Region list. Located in Denton, Texas, this fairly large public school handed out 18 degrees to qualified masters’s social work students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
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