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Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools

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2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

339 Colleges
$11,376 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$53,732 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Social Sciences Master's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 22,292 social sciences students received their degrees and certificates, making the major the #10 most popular in the country.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Grad Degree Search has created its Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 339 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best value master's degree programs for social sciences students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for social sciences majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 25 Best Schools for Affordable Quality for a Master's in Social Sciences

#1

Cabrini University

Radnor, PA

Our analysis found Cabrini University to be the best value school for social sciences students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. Located in the suburb of Radnor, Cabrini University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Cabrini University are $2,318 per year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Cabrini University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Brigham Young University - Provo. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Provo, BYU is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at BYU are $7,700 per year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, BYU also did well on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read More…

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwest Missouri State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the town of Maryville, Northwest is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Northwest are $7,064 a year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Northwest Missouri State University

Out of the 339 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Minnesota State University - Mankato landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the city of Mankato, Minnesota State Mankato is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Minnesota State Mankato are $9,308 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Minnesota State Mankato also is in the top 20% of our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking.

Full Social Sciences at Minnesota State University - Mankato Report

Out of the 339 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, American Public University System landed the # 5 spot on the list. American Military University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the fringe town of Charles Town.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at American Military University are $7,050 a year.

Full Social Sciences at American Public University System Report

#6

Lasell University

Newton, MA

With a ranking of #6, Lasell University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the small city of Newton, Lasell is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Lasell are $11,268 per year.

Read More…

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. SIUE is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Edwardsville.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at SIUE are $9,316 per year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

North Dakota State University - Main Campus landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree social sciences programs. North Dakota State University is a large public school located in the midsize city of Fargo.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at North Dakota State University are $12,028 per year.

In addition to its great value ranking, North Dakota State University is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list.

Read full report on Social Sciences at North Dakota State University - Main Campus

#9

Niagara University

Niagara University, NY

With a ranking of #9, Niagara University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large suburb of Niagara University, Niagara is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Niagara are $13,950 a year.

Read More…

#10

Webster University

Saint Louis, MO

Webster University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Saint Louis, Webster is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Webster are $13,500 per year.

Read More…

#11

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

Liberty University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree social sciences programs. Liberty University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Liberty University are $8,360 a year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Liberty University

Arizona State University - Skysong ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public school with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at ASU - Skysong are $9,982 a year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Arizona State University - Skysong

#13

Youngstown State University

Youngstown, OH

Youngstown State University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Youngstown, Youngstown State University is a public school with a large student population.

Youngstown State University graduate students pay an average of $6,931 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Social Sciences at Youngstown State University Report

#14

The Graduate Center, CUNY

New York, NY

With a ranking of #14, The Graduate Center, CUNY did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of New York, The Graduate Center is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The Graduate Center graduate students pay an average of $23,640 in tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its great value ranking, The Graduate Center is in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list.

Read full report on Social Sciences at The Graduate Center, CUNY

#15

Saint Vincent College

Latrobe, PA

Saint Vincent College ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Saint Vincent is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Latrobe.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Saint Vincent are $14,748 per year.

Saint Vincent excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list.

Read More…

With a ranking of #16, Illinois State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the suburb of Normal.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Illinois State are $11,773 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Illinois State also is in the top 20% of our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Illinois State University

With a ranking of #18, Northern Illinois University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. NIU is a large public school located in the suburb of Dekalb.

NIU graduate students pay an average of $11,390 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Northern Illinois University

#19

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH

Xavier University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Xavier is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Cincinnati.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Xavier are $12,076 per year.

Full Social Sciences at Xavier University Report

Missouri State University - Springfield landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree social sciences programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Springfield, Missouri State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Missouri State are $12,618 per year.

Full Social Sciences at Missouri State University - Springfield Report

#21

Angelo State University

San Angelo, TX

Angelo State University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the small city of San Angelo, Angelo State is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Angelo State graduate students pay an average of $14,590 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Angelo State University

#22

Bellevue University

Bellevue, NE

Bellevue University landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree social sciences programs. Bellevue University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Bellevue.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Bellevue University are $11,730 per year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Bellevue University

With a ranking of #23, The University of Tampa did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of Tampa, UT is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UT are $12,014 a year.

Full Social Sciences at The University of Tampa Report

#24

Regis University

Denver, CO

Regis University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Regis U is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Denver.

Regis U graduate students pay an average of $15,079 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Regis University

#25

Valparaiso University

Valparaiso, IN

Valparaiso University ranked #25 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Valpo is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Valparaiso.

Valpo graduate students pay an average of $12,220 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Social Sciences at Valparaiso University Report

Rest of the Top Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools

#26

Columbus State University

Columbus, GA
#28

Saint Joseph's University

Philadelphia, PA
#30

Lindenwood University

Saint Charles, MO
#33

University of Delaware

Newark, DE
#33

Biola University

La Mirada, CA
#35

Oklahoma City University

Oklahoma City, OK
#36

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA
#36

Villanova University

Villanova, PA
#38

Mercer University

Macon, GA
#38

University of North Dakota

Grand Forks, ND
#40

Valdosta State University

Valdosta, GA
#43

Creighton University

Omaha, NE
#43

Coppin State University

Baltimore, MD
#45

Salisbury University

Salisbury, MD
#46

Saint Cloud State University

Saint Cloud, MN
#49

Morehead State University

Morehead, KY
#50

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

Remaining Award Winners

This section shows the rest of the colleges awarded a Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 339 different United States social sciences schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
50 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great value schools for Social Sciences graduate students seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
52 Texas State University San Marcos, TX
53 University of Houston - Clear Lake Houston, TX
54 University of North Alabama Florence, AL
55 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
56 University of Central Arkansas Conway, AR
57 University of Illinois at Springfield Springfield, IL
57 Wichita State University Wichita, KS
59 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA
60 Indiana State University Terre Haute, IN
61 University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln, NE
61 Texas A&M International University Laredo, TX
63 Augusta University Augusta, GA
63 San Jose State University San Jose, CA
65 California State University - East Bay Hayward, CA
66 Norwich University Northfield, VT
67 California State University - Fresno Fresno, CA
67 California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA

Social Sciences by Region

View the Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Social Sciences Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Economics 6,173
International Relations & National Security 5,010
Political Science & Government 2,664
Geography & Cartography 2,315
Sociology 1,907
Anthropology 1,446
Criminology 936
General Social Sciences 745
Other Social Sciences 532
Urban Studies 432
Archeology 66
Demography & Population Studies 66

Majors Similar to Social Sciences

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 199,724
Psychology 42,013
Communication & Journalism 12,242
Library Science 5,929
History 4,391

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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