by our College Data Analytics TeamThere are lots of options to choose from today when trying to decide which school to attend. College Factual has developed its Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking as one thing you can use to help make this decision.
In This Year's Value Report:
We analyzed 89 schools across the Southwest Region to determine which have the best value Master's Degree 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.
To determine the value of a school in our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, we first add average tuition, fees, and room and board costs (without aid) together. 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 Phoenix - Arizona the best value (no aid) school in the Southwest Region for students working on their master’s degree. Phoenix, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a private for-profit school.
Not only is University of Phoenix - Arizona a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Arizona for overall quality. The average cost without aid for the school is $22,003 per year for graduate students.
A rank of #2 on our Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list means Grand Canyon University is a great place for students working on their degree. This large private for-profit school is located in Phoenix, Arizona.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Grand Canyon University is ranked #4 for quality in the state of Arizona. The average cost without aid for the school is $19,338 per year for graduate students.
The quality degree programs at Arizona State University - Skysong helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region. Scottsdale, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Arizona State University - Skysong a great value, but it is also ranked #6 in Arizona for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $20,982 a year.
Learn More About Value at Arizona State University - Skysong
Out of the 89 master’s degree schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Texas Tech University landed the #4 spot on the list. This large public school is located in Lubbock, Texas.
Texas Tech University has the honor of being ranked #8 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost without aid for the school is $28,044 per year for graduate students.
The quality degree programs at Oklahoma Christian University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Edmond, Oklahoma.
Not only is Oklahoma Christian University a great value, but it is also ranked #4 in Oklahoma for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $19,150 a year.
The University of Texas at Austin ranked #6 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. UT Austin is a large public school situated in Austin, Texas.
The University of Texas at Austin has the honor of being ranked #2 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost without aid for the school is $35,712 per year for graduate students.
Lamar University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #7. Lamar University is a fairly large public school situated in Beaumont, Texas.
Lamar University has the honor of being ranked #11 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $24,819 a year.
Southeastern Oklahoma State University landed the #8 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking. Southeastern Oklahoma State University is located in Durant, Oklahoma and has a medium-sized student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Southeastern Oklahoma State University a great value, but it is also ranked #8 in Oklahoma for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $18,276 a year.
Learn More About Value at Southeastern Oklahoma State University
With a ranking of #9, Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. Texas A&M College Station is a large public school situated in College Station, Texas.
Not only is Texas A&M University - College Station a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Texas for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $35,506 a year.
American InterContinental University - Online did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #10. AIU Online is located in Chandler, Arizona and has a fairly large student population. It is a private for-profit school.
American InterContinental University - Online has the honor of being ranked #7 in Arizona for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $19,669 a year.
Full American InterContinental University - Online Value Report
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is a large public school located in Edinburg, Texas.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley has the honor of being ranked #18 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost without aid for the school is $23,871 per year for graduate students.
University of Houston came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking. Houston, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is University of Houston a great value, but it is also ranked #9 in Texas for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $28,833 a year.
With a ranking of #13, West Texas A&M University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. This medium-sized public school is located in Canyon, Texas.
Not only is West Texas A&M University a great value, but it is also ranked #33 in Texas for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $17,524 a year.
University of North Texas did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #14. This large public school is located in Denton, Texas.
University of North Texas has the honor of being ranked #13 in Texas for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost without aid for the school is $25,758 per year for graduate students.
With a ranking of #15, Texas Woman’s University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. This fairly large public school is located in Denton, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Texas Woman’s University is ranked #15 for quality in the state of Texas. The average cost without aid for the school is $25,434 per year for graduate students.
Oklahoma City University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #16. OCU is located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and has a small student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Oklahoma City University has the honor of being ranked #5 in Oklahoma for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average cost without aid for the school is $22,896 per year for graduate students.
Oral Roberts University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. Located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
Not only is Oral Roberts University a great value, but it is also ranked #7 in Oklahoma for overall quality. The average cost without aid for the school is $21,650 per year for graduate students.
Northeastern State University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #18. NSU is a public institution located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Northeastern State University is ranked #9 for quality in the state of Oklahoma. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $19,031 a year.
Western New Mexico University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. This small public school is located in Silver City, New Mexico.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Western New Mexico University is ranked #2 for quality in the state of New Mexico. The average cost without aid for the school is $20,925 per year for graduate students.
University of Houston - Downtown did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking, coming in at #20. University of Houston - Downtown is a fairly large public school located in Houston, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Houston - Downtown is ranked #20 for quality in the state of Texas. The average cost without aid for the school is $25,415 per year for graduate students.
New Mexico Highlands University landed the #21 spot on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking. New Mexico Highlands University is a small public school situated in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Not only is New Mexico Highlands University a great value, but it is also ranked #4 in New Mexico for overall quality. The average cost without aid for the school is $20,062 per year for graduate students.
Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus ranked #22 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. This small public school is 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. The average cost without aid for the school is $14,924 per year for graduate students.
Read full value report on Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus
Southern Nazarene University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking. SNU is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Bethany, Oklahoma.
Not only is Southern Nazarene University a great value, but it is also ranked #6 in Oklahoma for overall quality. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $24,290 a year.
Lubbock Christian University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Lubbock, Texas.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Lubbock Christian University is ranked #42 for quality in the state of Texas. The average cost to attend the school for graduate students if you don’t receive any aid is $17,770 a year.
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money in the Southwest Region ranking. University of Oklahoma is a large public school situated in Norman, Oklahoma.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Oklahoma Norman Campus is ranked #1 for quality in the state of Oklahoma. The average cost without aid for the school is $35,576 per year for graduate students.
Learn More About Value at University of Oklahoma Norman Campus
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.