by our College Data Analytics TeamIt's not easy to decide which school to attend when you have so many options available. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking is part of that endeavor. This list may shock you as many typically expensive schools are very generous with need-based financial aid.
See What's Included in This Value Report:
We analyzed 88 schools across the Southwest Region to determine which have the best value Master's Degree programs. To come up with this ranking of the best value schools, we look at factors that are all objective measurements. More specifically, the following explains what we consider and why.
When determining the value of a school in our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking, we first look at its average net price of a student coming from a family that makes $75-$110k 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. But, a school that excels in providing value for your money must also be a great school overall as well.
To take this into account we include a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
To learn more, visit 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:
Rice University tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $75-$110k) school for master’s degrees in the Southwest Region for overall quality. Rice University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in Houston, Texas.
Not only is Rice University a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Texas for overall quality.
The quality degree programs at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region. Located in Edinburg, Texas, the school is a large public institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is ranked #18 for quality in the state of Texas.
Read full value report on The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
The quality degree programs at Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region. ENMU - Main Campus is a public institution located in Portales, New Mexico.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus is ranked #6 for quality in the state of New Mexico.
Learn More About Value at Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus
Out of the 88 master’s degree schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Texas A&M International University landed the #4 spot on the list. Texas A&M International University is located in Laredo, Texas and has a medium-sized student population. It is a public school.
Texas A&M International University has the honor of being ranked #45 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value.
The quality degree programs at University of Phoenix - Arizona helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region. This large private for-profit school is located in Phoenix, Arizona.
University of Phoenix - Arizona has the honor of being ranked #3 in Arizona for overall quality on top of being a good value.
With a ranking of #6, Arizona State University - Tempe did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region list. ASU - Tempe is located in Tempe, Arizona and has a large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Arizona State University - Tempe a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Arizona for overall quality.
Texas Woman’s University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Denton, Texas is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Texas Woman’s University a great value, but it is also ranked #15 in Texas for overall quality.
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Socorro, New Mexico is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology has the honor of being ranked #1 in New Mexico for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Learn More About Value at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
Lamar University landed the #9 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in Beaumont, Texas, the school is a fairly large public institution.
Lamar University has the honor of being ranked #11 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Texas A & M University - Central Texas landed the #10 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Killeen, Texas is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Texas A & M University - Central Texas has the honor of being ranked #52 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Learn More About Value at Texas A & M University - Central Texas
With a ranking of #11, University of North Texas did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region list. UNT is a public institution located in Denton, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of North Texas is ranked #13 for quality in the state of Texas.
University of Houston came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in Houston, Texas, the school is a large public institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Houston is ranked #9 for quality in the state of Texas.
The University of Texas at Austin did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #13. Austin, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of Texas at Austin is ranked #2 for quality in the state of Texas.
Oklahoma State University - Main Campus landed the #14 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Stillwater, Oklahoma is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Oklahoma State University - Main Campus has the honor of being ranked #2 in Oklahoma for overall quality on top of being a good value.
The University of Texas of the Permian Basin did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #15. UT Permian Basin is a public institution located in Odessa, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of Texas of the Permian Basin is ranked #40 for quality in the state of Texas.
Read full value report on The University of Texas of the Permian Basin
University of Arizona came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. University of Arizona is a large public school located in Tucson, Arizona.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Arizona is ranked #2 for quality in the state of Arizona.
Texas Tech University landed the #17 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Texas Tech is a public institution located in Lubbock, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Texas Tech University is ranked #8 for quality in the state of Texas.
Northern Arizona University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region list. This large public school is located in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Not only is Northern Arizona University a great value, but it is also ranked #5 in Arizona for overall quality.
The University of Texas at San Antonio ranked #19 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region list. San Antonio, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of Texas at San Antonio is ranked #24 for quality in the state of Texas.
Southeastern Oklahoma State University landed the #20 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. This medium-sized public school is located in Durant, Oklahoma.
Southeastern Oklahoma State University has the honor of being ranked #8 in Oklahoma for overall quality on top of being a good value.
The University of Texas at Dallas did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #21. UT Dallas is a large public school situated in Richardson, Texas.
Not only is The University of Texas at Dallas a great value, but it is also ranked #7 in Texas for overall quality.
New Mexico State University - Main Campus ranked #22 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region list. Las Cruces, New Mexico is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
New Mexico State University - Main Campus has the honor of being ranked #5 in New Mexico for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Learn More About Value at New Mexico State University - Main Campus
American InterContinental University - Online landed the #23 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in Chandler, Arizona, the school is a fairly large private for-profit institution.
American InterContinental University - Online has the honor of being ranked #7 in Arizona for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Read full value report on American InterContinental University - Online
Northeastern State University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #24. NSU is a public institution located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
Northeastern State University has the honor of being ranked #9 in Oklahoma for overall quality on top of being a good value.
The University of Texas at Arlington landed the #25 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in the Southwest Region ranking. The University of Texas at Arlington is a large public school located in Arlington, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of Texas at Arlington is ranked #10 for quality in the state of Texas.
Learn More About Value at The University of Texas at Arlington
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.