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 Southwest Region Schools For The Money For Those Getting Aid for an Associate ranking - to help you make that decision. This list is proof that you shouldn't avoid normally high-priced schools, since the actual price may be very affordable if you qualify for financial aid.
In This Year's Value Report:
After analyzing 117 schools in the Southwest Region , we came up with our list of those that offered the best value Associate Degree programs. Our ranking methodology focuses on different objective factors to make this determination of the best value schools. In the next few paragraphs, we'll talk a little about what we use in our analysis and why.
When determining the value of a school in our Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking, we first look at its average net price, which 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.
Find out more about our best value ranking methodology.
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 South Texas College the best value (with aid) school in the Southwest Region for students working on their associate degree. This large public school is located in McAllen, Texas.
South Texas College has the honor of being ranked #9 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $1,515 a year.
The quality degree programs at Lee College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region. Lee College is a public institution located in Baytown, Texas.
Not only is Lee College a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Texas for overall quality. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $7,113.
Out of the 117 associate degree schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, El Centro College landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Dallas, Texas, the school is a large public institution.
El Centro College has the honor of being ranked #7 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $4,803 a year.
A rank of #4 on our Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list means Central Texas College is a great place for students working on their degree. Central Texas College is a medium-sized public school situated in Killeen, Texas.
Not only is Central Texas College a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Texas for overall quality. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $6,285.
A rank of #5 on our Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list means Central New Mexico Community College is a great place for students working on their degree. This fairly large public school is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Not only is Central New Mexico Community College a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in New Mexico for overall quality. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $5,303 a year.
Pima Community College landed the #6 spot on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. This fairly large public school is located in Tucson, Arizona.
Pima Community College has the honor of being ranked #7 in Arizona for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $3,223 a year.
Houston Community College did quite well in the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #7. Houston Community College is a large public school located in Houston, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Houston Community College is ranked #5 for quality in the state of Texas. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $6,108 a year.
Lamar State College - Orange came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. Lamar State College - Orange is a public institution located in Orange, Texas.
Lamar State College - Orange has the honor of being ranked #26 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $1,974 a year.
Austin Community College District landed the #9 spot on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. Austin Community College District is a public institution located in Austin, Texas.
Not only is Austin Community College District a great value, but it is also ranked #16 in Texas for overall quality. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $4,233 a year.
With a ranking of #10, Lamar Institute of Technology did quite well on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list. Lamar Institute of Technology is a small public school situated in Beaumont, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Lamar Institute of Technology is ranked #4 for quality in the state of Texas. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $7,627.
Northwest Vista College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. Northwest Vista College is a fairly large public school located in San Antonio, Texas.
Northwest Vista College has the honor of being ranked #8 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $6,290.
Central Arizona College did quite well in the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #12. This small public school is located in Coolidge, Arizona.
Not only is Central Arizona College a great value, but it is also ranked #5 in Arizona for overall quality. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $5,933.
San Antonio College did quite well in the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #13. San Antonio College is a fairly large public school situated in San Antonio, Texas.
San Antonio College has the honor of being ranked #12 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $6,041.
University of Phoenix - Arizona landed the #14 spot on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. UOPX - Arizona is a private for-profit institution located in Phoenix, Arizona.
Not only is University of Phoenix - Arizona a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Arizona for overall quality. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $13,245.
McLennan Community College came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in Waco, Texas, the school is a medium-sized public institution.
Not only is McLennan Community College a great value, but it is also ranked #11 in Texas for overall quality. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $6,691 a year.
Del Mar College came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. Corpus Christi, Texas is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Del Mar College a great value, but it is also ranked #19 in Texas for overall quality. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $5,617.
With a ranking of #17, Collin County Community College District did quite well on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list. McKinney, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Collin County Community College District a great value, but it is also ranked #10 in Texas for overall quality. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $7,498 a year.
Learn More About Value at Collin County Community College District
With a ranking of #18, Grayson College did quite well on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list. Denison, Texas is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Grayson College has the honor of being ranked #31 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $3,102 a year.
Oklahoma City Community College landed the #19 spot on the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. OCCC is a fairly large public school situated in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Not only is Oklahoma City Community College a great value, but it is also ranked #2 in Oklahoma for overall quality. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $5,737 a year.
Panola College did quite well in the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #20. Panola College is located in Carthage, Texas and has a small student population. It is a public school.
Panola College has the honor of being ranked #21 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $6,080.
Tarrant County College District ranked #21 on this year’s Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list. Tarrant County College District is a large public school located in Fort Worth, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Tarrant County College District is ranked #15 for quality in the state of Texas. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $6,867 a year.
Texas State Technical College ranked #22 on this year’s Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list. Located in Waco, Texas, the school is a fairly large public institution.
Not only is Texas State Technical College a great value, but it is also ranked #2 in Texas for overall quality. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $11,698 a year.
El Paso Community College did quite well in the 2024 Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #23. El Paso Community College is a public institution located in El Paso, Texas.
El Paso Community College has the honor of being ranked #29 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $3,982.
Tulsa Community College ranked #24 on this year’s Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region list. Tulsa Community College is a fairly large public school located in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Tulsa Community College has the honor of being ranked #4 in Oklahoma for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average net price of the school for those who receive financial aid is about $5,393 a year.
Cochise County Community College District came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Associate Degree Colleges for the Money (With Aid) in the Southwest Region ranking. This small public school is located in Sierra Vista, Arizona.
Not only is Cochise County Community College District a great value, but it is also ranked #8 in Arizona for overall quality. For those students who receive financial aid, the yearly average net price of the school is around $7,239.
Learn More About Value at Cochise County Community College District
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.