2023 Most Popular Master's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region
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The Most Popular Master's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 166 schools in the Southwest Region to see which master's degree programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from each school on the list.
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Most Popular Master's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region of the U.S.
Learn more about these popular schools below:
Our 2023 rankings named Grand Canyon University the most popular school in the Southwest Region for students working on their master’s degree. Grand Canyon University is a large private for-profit school located in Phoenix, Arizona that handed out 14,378 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 78% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Grand Canyon University does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 96% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
You’ll be in good company if you attend University of Phoenix - Arizona. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Tempe, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out master’s degrees to 6,550 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 74% were women.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at UOPX - Arizona. In 2019-2020 about 99% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
You’ll be in good company if you attend Arizona State University - Skysong. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. This large public school is located in Scottsdale, Arizona, and it awarded 4,903 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 68% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, ASU - Skysong is an excellent choice, since graduate classes are offered online.
A rank of #4 on this year’s list means The University of Texas at Arlington is a great place for students working on their master’s degree. The University of Texas at Arlington is a large public school located in Arlington, Texas that handed out 4,902 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 66% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UT Arlington does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In 2019-2020 about 65% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
You’ll be in good company if you attend Arizona State University - Tempe. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Tempe, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 3,926 students in 2020-2021.
Around 46% of those degree recipients were women.
ASU - Tempe does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. In fact, around 42% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Texas A&M University - College Station ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Texas A&M College Station is a large public school situated in College Station, Texas. It awarded 3,603 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 46% were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at Texas A&M College Station. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 23% took at least some of their classes online.
The University of Texas at Dallas did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. The University of Texas at Dallas is a large public school located in Richardson, Texas that handed out 3,103 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 44% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UT Dallas does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 83% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
The University of Texas at Austin did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. This large public school is located in Austin, Texas, and it awarded 3,093 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 48% were women.
One thing to take note of is that UT Austin does offer online graduate classes in some areas. In 2019-2020 about 66% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Lamar University ranked #9 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in Beaumont, Texas, the fairly large public school awarded 2,667 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 74% were women.
Online graduate courses are available at Lamar University, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 95% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
University of Arizona landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree programs. This large public school is located in Tucson, Arizona, and it awarded 2,256 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 55% of those degree recipients were women.
University of Arizona does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 37% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
University of North Texas ranked #11 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in Denton, Texas, the large public school handed out 2,150 master’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 64% were women.
UNT does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. During the 2019-2020 year, about 50% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in Edinburg, Texas, the large public school awarded 1,891 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 67% of those degree recipients were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UT Rio Grande Valley. In 2019-2020 about 92% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Read full report on The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree programs. This large public school is located in Norman, Oklahoma, and it awarded 1,851 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 54% were women.
University of Oklahoma does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 54% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Houston came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. UH is a large public school situated in Houston, Texas. It awarded 1,791 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 58% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UH does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 77% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Texas Tech University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Texas Tech University is a large public school located in Lubbock, Texas that handed out 1,797 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 55% of those degree recipients were women.
Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Texas Tech. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 49% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Southern Methodist University ranked #16 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in Dallas, Texas, the fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 1,731 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 46% of those degree recipients were women.
Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at SMU. In 2019-2020 about 40% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #17, Texas Woman’s University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their master’s degree. Located in Denton, Texas, the fairly large public school handed out 1,547 master’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Around 90% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since TWU does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 88% took at least some of their classes online.
With a ranking of #18, Northern Arizona University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their master’s degree. Northern Arizona University is a large public school located in Flagstaff, Arizona that handed out 1,329 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 69% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since NAU does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 54% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #19, Texas A&M University - Commerce did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their master’s degree. Located in Commerce, Texas, the fairly large public school awarded 1,323 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 65% were women.
One thing to take note of is that Texas A&M Commerce does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 89% took at least some of their classes online.
The University of Texas at San Antonio did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list. The University of Texas at San Antonio is a large public school located in San Antonio, Texas that handed out 1,311 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 59% of those degree recipients were women.
One thing to take note of is that UTSA does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 89% took at least some of their classes online.
Texas State University ranked #21 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. This large public school is located in San Marcos, Texas, and it awarded 1,297 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 68% were women.
Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Texas State. During the 2019-2020 year, about 76% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
American InterContinental University - Online came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Schaumburg, Arizona is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out master’s degrees to 1,219 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 49% were women.
AIU Online is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Read full report on American InterContinental University - Online
Baylor University ranked #23 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Baylor is located in Waco, Texas and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,108 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Around 61% of those degree recipients were women.
Baylor does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 77% took at least some of their classes online.
The University of Texas at El Paso did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #24 on the list. This large public school is located in El Paso, Texas, and it awarded 1,139 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 55% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UTEP does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 88% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of New Mexico - Main Campus came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. UNM is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,080 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Of those students who received their degree, 57% were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UNM. During the 2019-2020 year, about 38% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Narrow Schools by State
View Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools Nationwide >
Honorable Mentions
These schools also performed well in our most popular schools ranking:
| Rank | School | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 26 | Southeastern Oklahoma State University | Durant, OK |
| 27 | Oklahoma State University - Main Campus | Stillwater, OK |
| 28 | Rice University | Houston, TX |
| 29 | The University of Texas at Tyler | Tyler, TX |
| 30 | University of Houston - Clear Lake | Houston, TX |
| 31 | West Texas A&M University | Canyon, TX |
| 32 | Sam Houston State University | Huntsville, TX |
| 33 | Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi | Corpus Christi, TX |
| 34 | The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston | Houston, TX |
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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