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Best Value Agriculture Schools

2023 Best Value Agriculture Schools

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

130 Colleges
$7,959 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$37,342 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Agriculture & Agriculture Operations School for You

In 2020-2021, 49,899 people earned a degree or certificate in agriculture and agriculture operations, making the major the #21 most popular in the United States.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Agriculture Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 130 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best value experiences for agriculture and agriculture operations students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

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

Top 15% Best Agriculture & Agriculture Operations Schools

#1

Ridgewater College

Willmar, MN

Our analysis found Ridgewater College to be the best value school for agriculture and agriculture operations students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Ridgewater College is a small public school located in the town of Willmar.

Ridgewater College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,914 in tuition and fees each year. Agriculture & Agriculture Operations majors at Ridgewater College take out an average of $12,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

In addition to its great value ranking, Ridgewater College is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Agriculture Schools list.

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$3,780 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Southeast Community College Area is a great value for agriculture and agriculture operations students. Located in the city of Lincoln, Southeast Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southeast Community College are $3,780 per year. While working on their degree, agriculture and agriculture operations majors at Southeast Community College accumulate an average of around $11,000 in student debt.

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#3

Central Community College

Grand Island, NE
$4,590 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Central Community College is a great value for agriculture and agriculture operations students. Central Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Grand Island.

Central Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,590 in tuition and fees each year.

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Out of the 130 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Brigham Young University - Provo landed the # 4 spot on the list. BYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Provo.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BYU are $6,120 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, BYU also is in the top 20% of our Best Agriculture Schools ranking.

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#5

Bismarck State College

Bismarck, ND

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bismarck State College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Agriculture Schools list. BSC is a small public school located in the small city of Bismarck.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at BSC are $6,930 a year. On average, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from BSC take out $12,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, BSC also is in the top 5% of our Best Agriculture Schools ranking.

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$5,483 Average Tuition & Fees

Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Agriculture Schools ranking. Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture is a small public school located in the remote area of Curtis.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture are $5,483 per year. The average amount in student loans that agriculture and agriculture operations majors at Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture take out is $11,286.

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$5,010 Average Tuition & Fees

Northeast Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for agriculture and agriculture operations students. It came in at #7 on the list. Northeast is a moderately-sized public school located in the remote town of Norfolk.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Northeast are $5,010 per year. The average amount in student loans that agriculture and agriculture operations majors at Northeast take out is $9,834.

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Lake Area Technical Institute came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Agriculture Schools ranking. Located in the town of Watertown, LATI is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at LATI are $6,718 a year. On average, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from LATI take out $12,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, LATI also is in the top 15% of our Best Agriculture Schools ranking.

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With a ranking of #9, North Dakota State College of Science did quite well on this year’s best value schools for agriculture and agriculture operations students. Located in the distant town of Wahpeton, North Dakota State College of Science is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at North Dakota State College of Science are $6,606 a year. After completing their degree, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from North Dakota State College of Science carry an average student debtload of $11,000.

North Dakota State College of Science excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Agriculture Schools list.

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Southwest Wisconsin Technical College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Agriculture Schools ranking. Southwest Tech is a small public school located in the rural area of Fennimore.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southwest Tech are $6,683 per year.

Southwest Tech also claimed a spot on our Best Agriculture Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

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$6,840 Average Tuition & Fees

Northeast Iowa Community College landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value agriculture and agriculture operations programs. NICC is a small public school located in the rural area of Calmar.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at NICC are $6,840 a year. After completing their degree, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from NICC carry an average student debtload of $10,054.

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#12

Kirkwood Community College

Cedar Rapids, IA
$7,072 Average Tuition & Fees

Kirkwood Community College came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Agriculture Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Cedar Rapids, Kirkwood Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Kirkwood Community College are $7,072 per year. The average amount in student loans that agriculture and agriculture operations majors at Kirkwood Community College take out is $10,875.

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Chippewa Valley Technical College ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Agriculture Schools list. Located in the city of Eau Claire, CVTC is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at CVTC are $6,683 a year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, CVTC also did well on our Best Agriculture Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

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$4,416 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #14, Brigham Young University - Idaho did quite well on this year’s best value schools for agriculture and agriculture operations students. BYU - I is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the town of Rexburg.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BYU - I are $4,416 per year. On average, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from BYU - I take out $19,825 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#15

Mitchell Technical College

Mitchell, SD

Mitchell Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for agriculture and agriculture operations students. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the rural area of Mitchell, Mitchell Tech is a public college with a small student population.

Mitchell Tech undergraduate students pay an average of $7,524 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from Mitchell Tech carry an average student debtload of $12,000.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Mitchell Tech also did well on our Best Agriculture Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Full Agriculture & Agriculture Operations at Mitchell Technical College Report

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Fox Valley Technical College ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Agriculture Schools list. FVTC is a large public school located in the suburb of Appleton.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at FVTC are $6,861 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, FVTC also is in the top 10% of our Best Agriculture Schools ranking.

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With a ranking of #17, North Shore Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for agriculture and agriculture operations students. Located in the suburb of Danvers, North Shore Community College is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at North Shore Community College are $10,920 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, North Shore Community College also is in the top 20% of our Best Agriculture Schools ranking.

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#18

Southeast Technical College

Sioux Falls, SD

Southeast Technical College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Agriculture Schools ranking. Located in the rural area of Sioux Falls, Southeast Tech is a public college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southeast Tech are $7,650 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Southeast Tech also is in the top 15% of our Best Agriculture Schools ranking.

Full Agriculture & Agriculture Operations at Southeast Technical College Report

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South Dakota State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for agriculture and agriculture operations students. It came in at #19 on the list. South Dakota State is a large public school located in the town of Brookings.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at South Dakota State are $12,809 per year. After completing their degree, agriculture and agriculture operations graduates from South Dakota State carry an average student debtload of $23,230. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $184, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

South Dakota State excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Agriculture Schools list.

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Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value Agriculture Schools award.

Rank College Location
20 Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN
21 Des Moines Area Community College Ankeny, IA
22 University of Northwestern Ohio Lima, OH
23 University of Minnesota - Crookston Crookston, MN
24 Cincinnati State Technical and Community College Cincinnati, OH
25 North Dakota State University - Main Campus Fargo, ND
26 Northwest Mississippi Community College Senatobia, MS

Agriculture & Agriculture Operations by Region

View the Best Value Agriculture Schools for a specific region near you.

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

Agriculture & Agriculture Operations Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Veterinary/Animal Health Technologies/Technicians 8,646
Animal Science 8,294
Agricultural Economics & Business 8,098
General Agriculture 3,370
Horticulture 3,234
Plant Sciences 3,175
Agricultural Production 3,066
Food Science Technology 2,532
Agricultural Mechanization 1,280
Animal Services 990
Agricultural Public Services 845
Other Agriculture 602
Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs 527
Soil Sciences 406
Food Processing 237
International Agriculture 122
Veterinary Administrative Services 118

Majors Similar to Agriculture & Agriculture Operations

Related Major Annual Graduates
Computer & Information Sciences 254,454
Engineering 198,468
Biological & Biomedical Sciences 177,778
Engineering Technologies 85,188
Mathematics & Statistics 52,396

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 W.carter.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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