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Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

71 Colleges
$15,548 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$32,881 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 556,813 degrees and certificates were awarded to liberal arts general studies students, making the major the most popular in the country.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This report analyzed 71 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones offered the best value bachelor's degree programs for liberal arts students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

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 Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for liberal arts majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.

Top 15% Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Western Illinois University the best value school in the Great Lakes Region for liberal arts general studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the remote town of Macomb, WIU is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at WIU are $13,297 per year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, liberal arts graduates from WIU carry an average student debtload of $30,879. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $216, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Western Illinois University

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global is a great value for liberal arts general studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the rural area of Marion, IWU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at IWU are $9,239 a year. Liberal Arts majors at IWU take out an average of $29,340 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Full Liberal Arts General Studies at Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global Report

#3

Baker College

Owosso, MI

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Baker College is a great value for liberal arts general studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Baker College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Owosso.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Baker College are $12,420 a year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, liberal arts graduates from Baker College carry an average student debtload of $40,126.

Read More…

Out of the 71 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh landed the # 4 spot on the list. UW Oshkosh is a large public school located in the city of Oshkosh.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UW Oshkosh are $15,306 per year. Liberal Arts majors at UW Oshkosh take out an average of $33,045 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Wisconsin - Green Bay. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. UW - Green Bay is a medium-sized public school located in the midsize city of Green Bay.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UW - Green Bay are $16,091 a year. Liberal Arts majors at UW - Green Bay take out an average of $28,608 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Full Liberal Arts General Studies at University of Wisconsin - Green Bay Report

#6

Youngstown State University

Youngstown, OH

Youngstown State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the small city of Youngstown, Youngstown State University is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Youngstown State University are $9,732 a year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, liberal arts majors at Youngstown State University accumulate an average of around $34,649 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $163.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Youngstown State University

#7

Eastern Illinois University

Charleston, IL

Eastern Illinois University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree liberal arts general studies programs. Located in the town of Charleston, EIU is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at EIU are $14,551 a year. The average amount in student loans that liberal arts majors at EIU take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $26,418.

Full Liberal Arts General Studies at Eastern Illinois University Report

#8

Ferris State University

Big Rapids, MI

Ferris State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts general studies students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Ferris is a fairly large public school located in the town of Big Rapids.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Ferris are $13,188 per year. On average, liberal arts graduates from Ferris take out $33,630 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Ferris State University

Northern Illinois University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts general studies students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. NIU is a large public school located in the suburb of Dekalb.

NIU undergraduate students pay an average of $14,738 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, liberal arts majors at NIU accumulate an average of around $30,661 in student debt.

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Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree liberal arts general studies programs. SIUC is a large public school located in the small city of Carbondale.

SIUC undergraduate students pay an average of $15,240 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, liberal arts majors at SIUC accumulate an average of around $26,953 in student debt.

Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree liberal arts general studies programs. Located in the small city of Eau Claire, UW - Eau Claire is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UW - Eau Claire are $17,149 per year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, liberal arts majors at UW - Eau Claire accumulate an average of around $25,036 in student debt.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UW - Eau Claire also is in the top 15% of our Best Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

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Additional Noteworthy Schools

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 Liberal Arts General Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
12 Miami University - Hamilton Hamilton, OH
13 Purdue University Northwest Hammond, IN
14 University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH

Best Liberal Arts General Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best liberal arts general studies colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 9,711
Ohio 11,432
Illinois 18,292
Indiana 3,815
Wisconsin 2,376

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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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