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Best Value General Education Schools in the Plains States Region

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2023 Best Value General Education Schools in the Plains States Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

55 Colleges
$21,671 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$44,616 Avg Salary

Finding the Best General Education School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, general education was ranked #39 in the country. In fact 29,810 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value General Education Schools in the Plains States Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 55 schools in the Plains States Region to see which programs offered the best value experiences for education students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

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 General Education Schools in the Plains States Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Value General Education Colleges.

Top 10 Best General Education Schools

#1

Martin Luther College

New Ulm, MN
$16,910 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Martin Luther College to be the best value school for general education students who want to pursue a degree in the Plains States Region . MLC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of New Ulm.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at MLC are $16,910 per year.

Read full report on General Education at Martin Luther College

#2

Bellevue University

Bellevue, NE

Out of the 55 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Bellevue University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Bellevue University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Bellevue.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Bellevue University are $8,310 a year. After completing their degree, education graduates from Bellevue University carry an average student debtload of $25,000.

Bellevue University also claimed a spot on our Best General Education Schools in the Plains States Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

Read More…

$5,010 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Northeast Community College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value General Education Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the town of Norfolk, Northeast is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Northeast are $5,010 a year.

Full General Education at Northeast Community College Report

#4

Morningside College

Sioux City, IA
$35,270 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Morningside College is a great value for general education students. Morningside is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Sioux City.

Morningside undergraduate students pay an average of $35,270 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on General Education at Morningside College

$26,060 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 55 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Southwest Baptist University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Southwest Baptist University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Bolivar.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Southwest Baptist University are $26,060 a year.

Read More…

$34,180 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Northwestern - St Paul. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value General Education Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the large suburb of Saint Paul, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Northwestern undergraduate students pay an average of $34,180 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on General Education at University of Northwestern - St Paul

$8,163 Average Tuition & Fees

Minot State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for general education students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the remote town of Minot, MSU is a public school with a small student population.

MSU undergraduate students pay an average of $8,163 in tuition and fees each year.

Full General Education at Minot State University Report

#8

Grand View University

Des Moines, IA
$30,954 Average Tuition & Fees

Grand View University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value General Education Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the city of Des Moines, Grand View University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Grand View University are $30,954 per year.

Full General Education at Grand View University Report

$9,482 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, Southwest Minnesota State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for general education students. Southwest Minnesota State University is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Marshall.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southwest Minnesota State University are $9,482 per year.

Read More…

#10

Bemidji State University

Bemidji, MN

Bemidji State University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value general education programs. Located in the remote town of Bemidji, Bemidji State University is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Bemidji State University are $9,806 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Bemidji State University also is in the top 15% of our Best General Education Schools in the Plains States Region ranking.

Read More…

Best General Education Colleges by State

Explore the best general education colleges for a specific state in the Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Missouri 493
Minnesota 2,028
Kansas 373
Iowa 226
Nebraska 59
North Dakota 24
South Dakota 88

General Education is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832

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 KOKUYO.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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