2023 Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Personal & Culinary Services School for You
Personal & Culinary Services is the #31 most popular major in the country with 130,328 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. 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 assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. This report analyzed 130 schools in the Southwest Region to see which ones offered the best value programs for personal and culinary services students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
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 Personal & Culinary Services Schools
Our analysis found El Centro College to be the best value school for personal and culinary services students who want to pursue a degree in the Southwest Region . Located in the large city of Dallas, El Centro College is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at El Centro College are $6,000 a year. While working on their degree, personal and culinary services majors at El Centro College accumulate an average of around $12,971 in student debt.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, El Centro College also is in the top 5% of our Best Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Lee College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the city of Baytown, Lee College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Lee College are $4,302 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Lee College also did well on our Best Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Out of the 130 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Amarillo College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Amarillo College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Amarillo.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Amarillo College are $4,704 per year.
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The excellent programs at South Plains College helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best personal and culinary services schools in the Southwest Region . Located in the distant town of Levelland, South Plains College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at South Plains College are $4,276 a year. Personal & Culinary Services majors at South Plains College take out an average of $11,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Howard College is a great value for personal and culinary services students. Located in the distant town of Big Spring, Howard County Junior College is a public school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Howard County Junior College are $5,430 per year.
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San Jacinto Community College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in the large suburb of Pasadena, San Jacinto College is a public college with a very large student population.
San Jacinto College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,040 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, personal and culinary services graduates from San Jacinto College carry an average student debtload of $9,003.
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Houston Community College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value personal and culinary services programs. Houston Community College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Houston.
Houston Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,460 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, personal and culinary services graduates from Houston Community College carry an average student debtload of $22,573.
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College of the Mainland did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for personal and culinary services students. It came in at #8 on the list. COM is a small public school located in the suburb of Texas City.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at COM are $3,873 a year.
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Del Mar College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value personal and culinary services programs. DMC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Corpus Christi.
DMC undergraduate students pay an average of $5,930 in tuition and fees each year.
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Lone Star College System ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. North Harris Montgomery is a very large public school located in the midsize city of The Woodlands.
North Harris Montgomery undergraduate students pay an average of $6,168 in tuition and fees each year. Personal & Culinary Services majors at North Harris Montgomery take out an average of $7,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, North Harris Montgomery also did well on our Best Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Frank Phillips College landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value personal and culinary services programs. FPC is a small public school located in the town of Borger.
FPC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,388 in tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #12, Grayson College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for personal and culinary services students. Located in the rural area of Denison, Grayson College is a public school with a small student population.
Grayson College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,482 in tuition and fees each year.
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Kilgore College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Kilgore College is a medium-sized public school located in the fringe town of Kilgore.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Kilgore College are $5,256 a year. Personal & Culinary Services majors at Kilgore College take out an average of $9,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Weatherford College came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Weatherford College is a medium-sized public school located in the fringe town of Weatherford.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Weatherford College are $7,800 per year. After completing their degree, personal and culinary services graduates from Weatherford College carry an average student debtload of $5,500.
Weatherford College also claimed a spot on our Best Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.
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Central New Mexico Community College ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the city of Albuquerque, CNM is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at CNM are $7,540 a year. Personal & Culinary Services majors at CNM take out an average of $8,735 in student loans while working on their egree.
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El Paso Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for personal and culinary services students. It came in at #16 on the list. Located in the large city of El Paso, El Paso Community College is a public school with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at El Paso Community College are $5,314 a year.
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Austin Community College District did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for personal and culinary services students. It came in at #16 on the list. Located in the large city of Austin, Austin Community College District is a public school with a very large student population.
Austin Community College District undergraduate students pay an average of $10,590 in tuition and fees each year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Austin Community College District also did well on our Best Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Navarro College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Navarro College is a moderately-sized public school located in the distant town of Corsicana.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Navarro College are $6,368 per year. While working on their degree, personal and culinary services majors at Navarro College accumulate an average of around $13,000 in student debt.
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Tarrant County College District came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Tarrant County College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Fort Worth.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Tarrant County College are $8,235 per year.
Tarrant County College also claimed a spot on our Best Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.
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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 Personal & Culinary Services Schools in the Southwest Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Dallas Institute of Funeral Service | Dallas, TX |
| 21 | Commonwealth Institute of Funeral Service | Houston, TX |
| 22 | Culinary Institute Inc | Houston, TX |
| 23 | Pima Community College | Tucson, AZ |
| 24 | Texas State Technical College | Waco, TX |
| 25 | St Philip’s College | San Antonio, TX |
| 26 | The Art Institute of Dallas | Dallas, TX |
Best Personal & Culinary Services Colleges by State
Explore the best personal and culinary services colleges for a specific state in the Southwest region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Arizona | 132 |
| Texas | 1,155 |
| New Mexico | 76 |
| Oklahoma | 45 |
More Personal & Culinary Services Rankings in the Southwest Region
Personal & Culinary Services Related Majors for Personal & Culinary Services
Personal & Culinary Services Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Cosmetology | 107,895 |
| Culinary Arts | 19,806 |
| Funeral & Mortuary Science | 2,354 |
| Casino Operations and Services | 192 |
| Other Personal & Culinary Services | 81 |
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Mechanic & Repair Technologies | 96,336 |
| Precision Production | 52,913 |
| Construction Trades | 35,794 |
| Transportation & Materials Moving | 29,084 |
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 U.S. Army Europe Images.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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