2023 Most Popular Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
A student has lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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 and bootcamps with offerings that you might find attractive.
The Most Popular Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 197 schools in the Plains States Region to see which ones were the most popular master's degree programs 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 Plains States Region of the U.S.
Learn more about these popular schools below:
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Capella University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Minneapolis, Minnesota is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out master’s degrees to 6,772 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 83% were women.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out Capella University. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Out of the 197 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities landed the # 3 spot on the list. Minneapolis, Minnesota is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 2,946 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 57% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UMN Twin Cities does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 65% took at least some of their classes online.
You’ll be in good company if you attend Webster University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Webster is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Louis, Missouri. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 2,578 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 57% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Webster does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 61% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Washington University in St Louis. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. WUSTL is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Saint Louis, Missouri. It awarded 2,343 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 57% were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at WUSTL. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 72% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Kansas 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 #6 on the list. Lawrence, Kansas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 1,560 students in 2020-2021.
Around 57% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since KU does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 69% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Maryville University of Saint Louis ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Maryville U is located in Saint Louis, Missouri and has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,553 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Of those students who received their degree, 74% were women.
Maryville U 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. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 91% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Iowa ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in Iowa City, Iowa, the large public school handed out 1,494 master’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
Around 51% of those degree recipients were women.
One thing to take note of is that Iowa does offer online graduate classes in some areas. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 33% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Missouri - Columbia ranked #9 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Mizzou is located in Columbia, Missouri and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,423 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Of those students who received their degree, 60% were women.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Mizzou. In 2019-2020 about 67% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #10, Missouri State University - Springfield did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their master’s degree. Missouri State is located in Springfield, Missouri and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,292 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Of those students who received their degree, 62% were women.
Missouri State does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. In fact, around 72% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Winona, Minnesota, and it awarded 1,275 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 71% were women.
One thing to take note of is that SMU MN does offer online graduate classes in some areas. In 2019-2020 about 86% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Bellevue University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Bellevue University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bellevue, Nebraska. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,164 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 59% were women.
Online graduate courses are available at Bellevue University, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2019-2020 year, about 99% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Kansas State University ranked #13 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Manhattan, Kansas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 1,146 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 64% were women.
Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at K -State. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 52% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
University of Missouri - Kansas City 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 #14 on the list. Located in Kansas City, Missouri, the fairly large public school awarded 1,102 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 59% of those degree recipients were women.
Online graduate courses are available at UMKC, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 66% took at least some of their classes online.
Emporia State University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree programs. Emporia, Kansas is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 1,074 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 72% were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at ESU. In 2019-2020 about 94% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
University of Central Missouri came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. UCM is a public institution located in Warrensburg, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,027 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 60% were women.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UCM. During the 2019-2020 year, about 46% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
University of St Thomas Minnesota landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree programs. University of St Thomas Minnesota is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota that handed out 980 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 53% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UST MN does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 80% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Concordia University, Nebraska ranked #18 on this year’s Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Seward, Nebraska is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out master’s degrees to 964 students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 81% were women.
Concordia University, Nebraska is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Iowa State University landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree programs. Located in Ames, Iowa, the large public school awarded 957 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 49% were women.
Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Iowa State. 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.
Fort Hays State University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. FHSU is located in Hays, Kansas and has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 924 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Of those students who received their degree, 67% were women.
Online graduate courses are available at FHSU, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 93% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
University of Nebraska - Lincoln landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree programs. UNL is a large public school situated in Lincoln, Nebraska. It awarded 919 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 51% were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since UNL does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In 2019-2020 about 48% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Saint Louis University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in Saint Louis, Missouri, the fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 868 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 65% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since SLU does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 57% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #23, Northwest Missouri State University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their master’s degree. Located in Maryville, Missouri, the medium-sized public school awarded 845 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of those students who received their degree, 68% were women.
Northwest 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. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 86% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #24, University of Nebraska at Omaha did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for students working on their master’s degree. Located in Omaha, Nebraska, the fairly large public school awarded 833 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 66% of those degree recipients were women.
UNOMAHA does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. During the 2019-2020 year, about 59% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Lindenwood University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in Saint Charles, Missouri, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 816 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 71% of those degree recipients were women.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Lindenwood University does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 74% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Rest of the Top 15% Most Popular Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region of the U.S.
Not only did these schools make the top 30 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
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Honorable Mentions
These schools also performed well in our most popular schools ranking:
| Rank | School | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 31 | Minnesota State University - Mankato | Mankato, MN |
| 32 | Pittsburg State University | Pittsburg, KS |
| 33 | Saint Cloud State University | Saint Cloud, MN |
| 34 | University of South Dakota | Vermillion, SD |
| 34 | University of Nebraska at Kearney | Kearney, NE |
| 36 | Maharishi International University | Fairfield, IA |
| 37 | University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls, IA |
| 38 | Southeast Missouri State University | Cape Girardeau, MO |
| 39 | North Dakota State University - Main Campus | Fargo, ND |
| 40 | Creighton University | Omaha, NE |
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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