2022 Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Drama & Theater Arts is the 59th most popular major in the country with 18,124 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, drama and theater arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $21,403 and had an average of $26,932 in loans still to pay off.

Across District of Columbia, there were 91 drama and theater arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $23,100 and $20,000 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 47 drama and theater arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $44,446 and $25,767 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 3 colleges that offered a degree in drama and theater arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great drama and theater arts programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the drama and theater arts program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The theater school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k”.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our 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.

Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 3 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Drama & Theater Arts (Income $0-$30k) in District of Columbia

#1

George Washington University

Washington, District of Columbia

#2 in overall quality

$17,614 Average Net Price

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, George Washington University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Washington, District of Columbia, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 8 degrees to qualified bachelors’s theater students in 2019-2020.

GWU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Drama & Theater Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in District of Columbia” list. It costs about $17,614 for District of Columbia Bachelor’s Degree Theater students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend GWU.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Drama & Theater Arts at GWU

#2

American University

Washington, District of Columbia

#1 in overall quality

$28,432 Average Net Price

$20,140 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend American University. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k list. American University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Washington, District of Columbia. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The American University also took the #1 spot in our “Best Drama & Theater Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in District of Columbia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend American University is $28,432 for District of Columbia Bachelor’s Degree Theater students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Drama & Theater Arts at The American University

#3

Catholic University of America

Washington, District of Columbia

#3 in overall quality

$25,675 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Catholic University of America. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Theater Schools for a Bachelor’s in District of Columbia For Those Making $0-$30k. Washington, District of Columbia is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s theater degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.

CUA also made our “Best Drama & Theater Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in District of Columbia” list, coming in at #3. The estimated yearly cost for Catholic University of America is $25,675 for district of columbia bachelor’s degree theater students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.8% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on Drama & Theater Arts at Catholic University of America

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Drama & Theater Arts (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region
• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Drama & Theater Arts (Income $0-$30k)

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 Donald Judge.

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