by our College Data Analytics TeamWith all of the options you have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take when you want to pursue a degree. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our Best Middle Atlantic Region Schools For The Money For Those Making $0-$30k ranking - to help you make that decision. You may be surprised that some normally high-priced schools offer very generous financial aid packages to those who qualify.
In This Year's Value Report:
We analyzed 408 schools across the Middle Atlantic Region to determine which have the best value programs. Our ranking methodology focuses on different objective factors to make this determination of the best value schools. We explain more about what we look at and why we do so below.
When determining the value of a school in our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, we first look at its average net price of a student coming from a family that makes $0-$30k a year. The net price is defined as the sum of room and board, tuition, and fees minus any financial aid that the student receives. In addition, the overall quality of a school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how much it costs.
To make it into this list a school must offer a quality education like the schools in our Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considers factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
We go into more detail on these factors on our best value ranking methodology page.
You can scroll down to see the top schools for this ranking, but you may also want to view some of the other ranking methods listed below.
Know what field you want to major in? Make sure you check out our best value schools by major. In addition, you can select one of the links below to see the best value colleges for other degree levels.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our 2024 rankings named University of Pennsylvania the best value (income $0-$30k) school in the Middle Atlantic Region . Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the school is a large private not-for-profit institution.
Not only is University of Pennsylvania a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Pennsylvania for overall quality.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Columbia University in the City of New York. It ranked #2 on our 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. This large private not-for-profit school is located in New York, New York.
Columbia University in the City of New York has the honor of being ranked #1 in New York for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Read full value report on Columbia University in the City of New York
Out of the 408 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Johns Hopkins University landed the #3 spot on the list. Johns Hopkins University is a large private not-for-profit school located in Baltimore, Maryland.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Johns Hopkins University is ranked #1 for quality in the state of Maryland.
Out of the 408 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Georgetown University landed the #4 spot on the list. Georgetown is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Washington, District of Columbia.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Georgetown University is ranked #1 for quality in the state of District of Columbia. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $596.
The quality degree programs at Cornell University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region. Ithaca, New York is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Cornell University has the honor of being ranked #2 in New York for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $1,862.
With a ranking of #6, Princeton University did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Located in Princeton, New Jersey, the school is a medium-sized private not-for-profit institution.
Princeton University has the honor of being ranked #1 in New Jersey for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $5,761.
With a ranking of #7, University of Maryland - Baltimore County did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. UMBC is located in Baltimore, Maryland and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is University of Maryland - Baltimore County a great value, but it is also ranked #4 in Maryland for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $324.
Learn More About Value at University of Maryland - Baltimore County
With a ranking of #8, Hunter College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Hunter is a public institution located in New York, New York.
Not only is Hunter College a great value, but it is also ranked #23 in New York for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $156.
University of Maryland - College Park came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. This large public school is located in College Park, Maryland.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Maryland - College Park is ranked #2 for quality in the state of Maryland. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $6,739.
Learn More About Value at University of Maryland - College Park
With a ranking of #10, John Jay College of Criminal Justice did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. John Jay is a public institution located in New York, New York.
John Jay College of Criminal Justice has the honor of being ranked #19 in New York for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $687.
Learn More About Value at John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Baruch College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. New York, New York is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Baruch College has the honor of being ranked #25 in New York for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $345.
Dickinson College landed the #12 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Dickinson College is a small private not-for-profit school located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Dickinson College is ranked #17 for quality in the state of Pennsylvania. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $1,245.
Fashion Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, coming in at #13. FIT SUNY is a medium-sized public school situated in New York, New York.
Fashion Institute of Technology has the honor of being ranked #6 in New York for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $6,172.
With a ranking of #14, Queens College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. QC is located in Queens, New York and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Queens College a great value, but it is also ranked #31 in New York for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $1,092.
The City College of New York landed the #15 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Located in New York, New York, the school is a fairly large public institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The City College of New York is ranked #45 for quality in the state of New York. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $552.
Brooklyn College did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking, coming in at #16. Brooklyn College is a fairly large public school situated in Brooklyn, New York.
Brooklyn College has the honor of being ranked #44 in New York for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $834.
Towson University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Towson, Maryland is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Towson University has the honor of being ranked #6 in Maryland for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $4,493.
With a ranking of #18, Rutgers University - New Brunswick did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Rutgers New Brunswick is located in New Brunswick, New Jersey and has a large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Rutgers University - New Brunswick a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in New Jersey for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $7,114.
Learn More About Value at Rutgers University - New Brunswick
The College of New Jersey came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. TCNJ is a medium-sized public school situated in Ewing, New Jersey.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The College of New Jersey is ranked #5 for quality in the state of New Jersey. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $4,889.
Hamilton College came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Clinton, New York.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Hamilton College is ranked #8 for quality in the state of New York. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $7,555.
With a ranking of #21, Carnegie Mellon University did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit institution located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Not only is Carnegie Mellon University a great value, but it is also ranked #2 in Pennsylvania for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $14,879.
With a ranking of #22, Montgomery College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. Montgomery College is a fairly large public school situated in Rockville, Maryland.
Montgomery College has the honor of being ranked #5 in Maryland for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $5,966.
Washington College ranked #23 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Chestertown, Maryland.
Washington College has the honor of being ranked #11 in Maryland for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $3,144.
Frederick Community College came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Located in Frederick, Maryland, the school is a medium-sized public institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Frederick Community College is ranked #17 for quality in the state of Maryland. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $2,168.
Lehman College landed the #25 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking. Lehman is a fairly large public school situated in Bronx, New York.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Lehman College is ranked #68 for quality in the state of New York. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $1,059.
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
View Best Value
To learn more about the schools below, just click on their names:
| Rank | College | Location | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 51 | York College | Jamaica, NY | Value Report |
| 52 | Bergen Community College | Paramus, NJ | Value Report |
| 53 | Queensborough Community College | Bayside, NY | Value Report |
| 54 | Howard Community College | Columbia, MD | Value Report |
| 55 | Rowan College at Burlington County | Mount Laurel, NJ | Value Report |
| 56 | Ramapo College of New Jersey | Mahwah, NJ | Value Report |
| 57 | Orange County Community College | Middletown, NY | Value Report |
| 58 | Baltimore City Community College | Baltimore, MD | Value Report |
| 59 | LaGuardia Community College | Long Island City, NY | Value Report |
| 60 | Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania | Slippery Rock, PA | Value Report |
| 61 | College of Southern Maryland | La Plata, MD | Value Report |
| 62 | Carroll Community College | Westminster, MD | Value Report |
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These schools also performed well in our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in the Middle Atlantic Region ranking:
| Rank | College | Location | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63 | University of Delaware | Newark, DE | Value Report |
| 64 | Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan Campus | Teaneck, NJ | Value Report |
| 65 | SUNY Ulster | Stone Ridge, NY | Value Report |
| 66 | Lehigh University | Bethlehem, PA | Value Report |
| 67 | Monroe Community College | Rochester, NY | Value Report |
| 68 | SUNY Old Westbury | Old Westbury, NY | Value Report |
| 69 | Niagara County Community College | Sanborn, NY | Value Report |
| 70 | Raritan Valley Community College | Branchburg, NJ | Value Report |
| 71 | Kingsborough Community College | Brooklyn, NY | Value Report |
| 72 | Camden County College | Blackwood, NJ | Value Report |
| 73 | Community College of Allegheny County | Pittsburgh, PA | Value Report |
| 74 | Harford Community College | Bel Air, MD | Value Report |
| 75 | Onondaga Community College | Syracuse, NY | Value Report |
| 76 | Binghamton University | Vestal, NY | Value Report |
| 77 | Stony Brook University | Stony Brook, NY | Value Report |
| Rank | College | Location | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 78 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | Syracuse, NY | Value Report |
| 79 | Montgomery County Community College | Blue Bell, PA | Value Report |
| 80 | SUNY Polytechnic Institute | Utica, NY | Value Report |
| 81 | SUNY Empire State College | Saratoga Springs, NY | Value Report |
| 82 | University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus | Pittsburgh, PA | Value Report |
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.