by our College Data Analytics TeamWhen pursuing a degree in today's world, there are many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking as one thing you can use to help make this decision. A school that typically has a high sticker price may actually be very affordable, depending on how much need-based financial aid you receive.
See What's Included in This Value Report:
After analyzing 37 schools in the Rocky Mountains Region , we came up with our list of those that offered the best value Master's Degree programs. Instead of depending on subjective information to rank the best value schools, we focus on objective factors in our analysis. We explain more about what we look at and why we do so below.
To calculate the value of a school in our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, we first consider its average net price of students from families making $0-$30k a year. The net price is the sum of room and board, tuition, and fees minus any financial aid that that the student receives. But, a school that excels in providing value for your money must also be a great school overall as well.
To account for this we include a school's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a collection of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
We go into more detail on these factors on our best value ranking methodology page.
Keep scrolling for the top schools in this ranking or select one of the other rankings methods below.
If you know what major you want to study, check out our list of the best value schools by major. If you're interested in other degree levels, you can view one of the lists below.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
University of Wyoming tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $0-$30k) school for master’s degrees in the Rocky Mountains Region for overall quality. Laramie, Wyoming is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is University of Wyoming a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Wyoming for overall quality.
Out of the 37 master’s degree schools in the Rocky Mountains Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Brigham Young University - Provo landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Provo, Utah, the school is a large private not-for-profit institution.
Brigham Young University - Provo has the honor of being ranked #1 in Utah for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Out of the 37 master’s degree schools in the Rocky Mountains Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Utah landed the #3 spot on the list. U of U is a public institution located in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Not only is University of Utah a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Utah for overall quality.
A rank of #4 on our Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list means Western Governors University is a great place for students working on their degree. WGU is located in Salt Lake City, Utah and has a large student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Western Governors University has the honor of being ranked #2 in Utah for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Out of the 37 master’s degree schools in the Rocky Mountains Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Red Rocks Community College landed the #5 spot on the list. Lakewood, Colorado is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
With a ranking of #6, Colorado State University - Fort Collins did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Colorado State University - Fort Collins is a large public school located in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Not only is Colorado State University - Fort Collins a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Colorado for overall quality.
University of Idaho landed the #7 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Moscow, Idaho is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
University of Idaho has the honor of being ranked #1 in Idaho for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Utah State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Utah State University is a large public school located in Logan, Utah.
Not only is Utah State University a great value, but it is also ranked #5 in Utah for overall quality.
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, coming in at #9. This large public school is located in Denver, Colorado.
Not only is University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus a great value, but it is also ranked #9 in Colorado for overall quality.
Read full value report on University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus
Colorado State University - Global Campus ranked #10 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Colorado State University - Global Campus is a public institution located in Aurora, Colorado.
Not only is Colorado State University - Global Campus a great value, but it is also ranked #5 in Colorado for overall quality.
Read full value report on Colorado State University - Global Campus
Montana Technological University landed the #11 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Butte, Montana is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Montana Technological University has the honor of being ranked #1 in Montana for overall quality on top of being a good value.
University of Colorado Boulder did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, coming in at #12. This large public school is located in Boulder, Colorado.
Not only is University of Colorado Boulder a great value, but it is also ranked #4 in Colorado for overall quality.
Weber State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. WSU is a large public school situated in Ogden, Utah.
Not only is Weber State University a great value, but it is also ranked #6 in Utah for overall quality.
Southern Utah University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Southern Utah University is a fairly large public school situated in Cedar City, Utah.
Southern Utah University has the honor of being ranked #7 in Utah for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Utah Valley University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Orem, Utah is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Utah Valley University a great value, but it is also ranked #8 in Utah for overall quality.
With a ranking of #16, Colorado School of Mines did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Mines is a public institution located in Golden, Colorado.
Not only is Colorado School of Mines a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Colorado for overall quality.
Boise State University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Boise State is a public institution located in Boise, Idaho.
Boise State University has the honor of being ranked #2 in Idaho for overall quality on top of being a good value.
University of Northern Colorado landed the #18 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. University of Northern Colorado is located in Greeley, Colorado and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Northern Colorado is ranked #7 for quality in the state of Colorado.
Adams State University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Alamosa, Colorado is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Adams State University is ranked #12 for quality in the state of Colorado.
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. UCCS is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is University of Colorado at Colorado Springs a great value, but it is also ranked #10 in Colorado for overall quality.
Full University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Value Report
The University of Montana landed the #21 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. UM is located in Missoula, Montana and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of Montana is ranked #4 for quality in the state of Montana.
University of Denver ranked #22 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. DU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Denver, Colorado.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Denver is ranked #2 for quality in the state of Colorado.
With a ranking of #23, Colorado State University - Pueblo did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Colorado State University - Pueblo is a public institution located in Pueblo, Colorado.
Not only is Colorado State University - Pueblo a great value, but it is also ranked #15 in Colorado for overall quality.
Learn More About Value at Colorado State University - Pueblo
Rocky Mountain College landed the #24 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Billings, Montana.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Rocky Mountain College is ranked #3 for quality in the state of Montana.
With a ranking of #25, Idaho State University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Located in Pocatello, Idaho, the school is a fairly large public institution.
Idaho State University has the honor of being ranked #3 in Idaho for overall quality on top of being a good value.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.