by our College Data Analytics TeamThere are lots of options to choose from today when trying to decide which school to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota ranking is part of that endeavor. 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:
After analyzing 12 schools in South Dakota, we came up with our list of those that offered the best value programs. Our ranking for the best value schools is based on objective factors. We steer clear of subjective measures since they don't give a clear picture when determining how one school compares to another. 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 $75-$110k) in South Dakota 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. In addition, the overall quality of a school is important to ensure a good 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:
Lake Area Technical Institute tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $75-$110k) school in South Dakota for overall quality. LATI is a small public school situated in Watertown, South Dakota.
Not only is Lake Area Technical Institute a great value, but it is also ranked #2 in South Dakota for overall quality. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $16,723.
Out of the 12 schools in South Dakota that were part of this year’s ranking, Mitchell Technical College landed the #2 spot on the list. Mitchell, South Dakota 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, Mitchell Technical College is ranked #7 for quality in the state of South Dakota. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $15,498.
A rank of #3 on our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota list means South Dakota State University is a great place for students working on their degree. South Dakota State is a fairly large public school situated in Brookings, South Dakota.
Not only is South Dakota State University a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in South Dakota for overall quality. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $19,546.
The quality degree programs at Southeast Technical College helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota. This small public school is located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Southeast Technical College is ranked #8 for quality in the state of South Dakota. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $75-$110k per year is $16,946.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Dakota State University. It ranked #5 on our 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota list. Dakota State is a small public school situated in Madison, South Dakota.
Not only is Dakota State University a great value, but it is also ranked #6 in South Dakota for overall quality. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $20,432.
With a ranking of #6, Mount Marty University did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Yankton, South Dakota.
Mount Marty University has the honor of being ranked #3 in South Dakota for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $21,281.
With a ranking of #7, University of South Dakota did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota list. USD is located in Vermillion, South Dakota and has a medium-sized student population. It is a public school.
University of South Dakota has the honor of being ranked #5 in South Dakota for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $75-$110k per year is $21,342.
Northern State University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota list. Aberdeen, South Dakota is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Northern State University has the honor of being ranked #9 in South Dakota for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $75-$110k per year is $18,741.
Black Hills State University landed the #9 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota ranking. Spearfish, South Dakota 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, Black Hills State University is ranked #12 for quality in the state of South Dakota. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $18,323.
University of Sioux Falls came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota ranking. Located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Sioux Falls is ranked #11 for quality in the state of South Dakota. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $22,986.
Western Dakota Technical Institute came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota ranking. Western Dakota Tech is located in Rapid City, South Dakota and has a small student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Western Dakota Technical Institute a great value, but it is also ranked #13 in South Dakota for overall quality. Students from families who make $75-$110k a year pay an annual average net price of $19,795.
With a ranking of #12, Augustana University did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in South Dakota list. Augustana Sioux Falls is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Augustana University is ranked #4 for quality in the state of South Dakota. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $75-$110k per year is $28,799.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 12 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.