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Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region

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2023 Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

81 Colleges
$18,050 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$46,451 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Education School for You

With 327,871 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, education is the #4 most popular major in the United States.

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.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 81 schools in the Southwest 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 Education Schools in the Southwest Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for education majors pursuing a .

Top 15% Best Education Schools

$4,995 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Santa Fe Community College the best value school in the Southwest Region for education students. SFCC is a small public school located in the small suburb of Santa Fe.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at SFCC are $4,995 a year. On average, education graduates from SFCC take out $20,018 in student loans while working on their degree.

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$7,566 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Pima Community College is a great value for education students. Located in the city of Tucson, Pima County Community College District is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Pima County Community College District are $7,566 a year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Pima County Community College District take out is $13,907.

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$7,540 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 81 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Central New Mexico Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. CNM is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Albuquerque.

CNM undergraduate students pay an average of $7,540 in tuition and fees each year. On average, education graduates from CNM take out $9,562 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Education at Central New Mexico Community College

#4

MSU Texas

Wichita Falls, TX
$11,726 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 81 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, MSU Texas landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the midsize city of Wichita Falls, MSU Texas is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at MSU Texas are $11,726 a year.

Full Education at MSU Texas Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Arizona State University - Skysong. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ASU - Skysong are $13,092 per year. Education majors at ASU - Skysong take out an average of $23,380 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $286, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

ASU - Skysong also claimed a spot on our Best Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

Full Education at Arizona State University - Skysong Report

$8,568 Average Tuition & Fees

Eastern New Mexico University - Main Campus ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the town of Portales, ENMU - Main Campus is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at ENMU - Main Campus are $8,568 a year. On average, education graduates from ENMU - Main Campus take out $22,982 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#7

Grand Canyon University

Phoenix, AZ

Grand Canyon University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value education programs. Grand Canyon University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the large city of Phoenix.

Grand Canyon University undergraduate students pay an average of $17,189 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Grand Canyon University take out is $36,153. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $118.

Read full report on Education at Grand Canyon University

With a ranking of #8, Ottawa University - Phoenix did quite well on this year’s best value schools for education students. Located in the city of Phoenix, Ottawa University - Phoenix is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Ottawa University - Phoenix are $13,281 a year. After completing their degree, education graduates from Ottawa University - Phoenix carry an average student debtload of $25,583.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Ottawa University - Phoenix also did well on our Best Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read full report on Education at Ottawa University - Phoenix

$15,870 Average Tuition & Fees

Southeastern Oklahoma State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. Southeastern Oklahoma State University is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Durant.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southeastern Oklahoma State University are $15,870 per year. Education majors at Southeastern Oklahoma State University take out an average of $25,087 in student loans while working on their egree.

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Lubbock Christian University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the city of Lubbock, LCU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at LCU are $24,900 per year. On average, education graduates from LCU take out $29,000 in student loans while working on their degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $102.

Full Education at Lubbock Christian University Report

$19,333 Average Tuition & Fees

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the midsize city of Edinburg, UT Rio Grande Valley is a public college with a very large student population.

UT Rio Grande Valley undergraduate students pay an average of $19,333 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Education at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Report

#12

Angelo State University

San Angelo, TX
$17,978 Average Tuition & Fees

Angelo State University landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value education programs. Located in the small city of San Angelo, Angelo State is a public college with a large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Angelo State are $17,978 a year.

Read full report on Education at Angelo State University

$15,001 Average Tuition & Fees

Northwestern Oklahoma State University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region list. NWOSU is a small public school located in the town of Alva.

NWOSU undergraduate students pay an average of $15,001 in tuition and fees each year. Education majors at NWOSU take out an average of $21,082 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read More…

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great value schools for Education students in the Southwest Region seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Education Schools in the Southwest Region award.

Rank College Location
14 Southwestern Assemblies of God University Waxahachie, TX
15 Southern Nazarene University Bethany, OK
16 Northeastern State University Tahlequah, OK

Best Education Colleges by State

Explore the best education schools for a specific state in the Southwest region.

State Degrees Awarded
Arizona 16,265
Texas 17,614
New Mexico 1,831
Oklahoma 3,171

Education Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
General Education 29,810
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832
Student Counseling 13,858
Instructional Media Design 8,695
Teaching English or French 5,791
Other Education 4,858
Teaching Assistants 2,751
Educational Assessment 2,552
Multilingual Education 1,910
Education Philosophy 737
International Education 293

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Sciences 205,984
Psychology 195,678
Communication & Journalism 120,571
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 27 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 Horadrim.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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