2023 Best Value Philosophy Schools
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Philosophy School for You
Philosophy is the #84 most popular major in the country with 10,054 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Philosophy Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 83 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best value experiences for philosophy students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. 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.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 15% Best Philosophy Schools
Our analysis found Arizona State University - Skysong to be the best value school for philosophy students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Located in the city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public college with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ASU - Skysong are $13,092 per year. The average amount in student loans that philosophy majors at ASU - Skysong take out is $23,733.
ASU - Skysong also claimed a spot on our Best Philosophy Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.
Full Philosophy at Arizona State University - Skysong Report
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Biola University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Philosophy Schools list. Biola is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of La Mirada.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Biola are $44,382 per year.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Liberty University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools list. Liberty University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Lynchburg.
Liberty University undergraduate students pay an average of $16,160 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Philosophy at Liberty University Report
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The excellent programs at University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best philosophy schools in the United States. UW - Stevens Point is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Stevens Point.
UW - Stevens Point undergraduate students pay an average of $17,035 in tuition and fees each year. On average, philosophy graduates from UW - Stevens Point take out $23,624 in student loans while working on their degree.
In addition to its great value ranking, UW - Stevens Point is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Philosophy Schools list.
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The excellent programs at California State University - Fresno helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best philosophy schools in the United States. Fresno State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Fresno.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Fresno State are $18,533 per year. Philosophy majors at Fresno State take out an average of $14,824 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Philosophy at California State University - Fresno
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Florida State University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value philosophy programs. Florida State is a very large public school located in the city of Tallahassee.
Florida State undergraduate students pay an average of $21,683 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, philosophy graduates from Florida State carry an average student debtload of $24,605.
Full Philosophy at Florida State University Report
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University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools list. Located in the city of Milwaukee, UWM is a public school with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UWM are $21,475 per year.
Full Philosophy at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Report
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Florida International University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for philosophy students. It came in at #8 on the list. FIU is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Miami.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at FIU are $18,963 a year. The average amount in student loans that philosophy majors at FIU take out is $13,393.
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San Francisco State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools list. SFSU is a very large public school located in the large city of San Francisco.
SFSU undergraduate students pay an average of $19,184 in tuition and fees each year. Philosophy majors at SFSU take out an average of $16,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Philosophy at San Francisco State University
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University of Minnesota - Duluth came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools ranking. Located in the city of Duluth, UMN Duluth is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UMN Duluth are $19,148 a year.
UMN Duluth excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Philosophy Schools list.
Full Philosophy at University of Minnesota - Duluth Report
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With a ranking of #11, Franciscan University of Steubenville did quite well on this year’s best value schools for philosophy students. Franciscan U is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Steubenville.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Franciscan U are $30,180 a year. While working on their degree, philosophy majors at Franciscan U accumulate an average of around $25,625 in student debt.
Read full report on Philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville
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California State University - Northridge came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools ranking. CSUN is a very large public school located in the large city of Northridge.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSUN are $18,923 per year. While working on their degree, philosophy majors at CSUN accumulate an average of around $11,750 in student debt.
Request InformationAdditional 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 Philosophy Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Duke University | Durham, NC |
| 14 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, NC |
| 15 | University of Wisconsin - Madison | Madison, WI |
| 15 | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA |
Philosophy by Region
View the Best Value Philosophy Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
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Majors Related to Philosophy
Philosophy is one of 3 different types of programs to choose from.
Majors Similar to Philosophy
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Religious Studies | 9,470 |
| Other Philosophy & Religious Studies | 285 |
| General Philosophy & Religious Studies | 184 |
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.