2023 Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate School for You
With 205,984 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, social sciences is the #6 most popular major in the United States.
It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
The Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 147 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best value graduate certificate programs for social sciences 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 Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools
Our analysis found Northwest Missouri State University to be the best value school for social sciences students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the United States. Northwest is a moderately-sized public school located in the remote town of Maryville.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Northwest are $7,064 per year.
Request Information
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Minnesota State University - Mankato. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public school located in the city of Mankato.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Minnesota State Mankato are $9,308 per year.
Minnesota State Mankato also claimed a spot on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Minnesota State University - Mankato
Request Information
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The Graduate Center, CUNY. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. The Graduate Center is a medium-sized public school located in the city of New York.
The Graduate Center graduate students pay an average of $23,640 in tuition and fees each year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, The Graduate Center also is in the top 20% of our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking.
Full Social Sciences at The Graduate Center, CUNY Report
Request Information
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Webster University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. Webster is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Webster are $13,500 per year.
Full Social Sciences at Webster University Report
Request Information
A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Valparaiso University is a great value for social sciences students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the suburb of Valparaiso, Valpo is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Valpo graduate students pay an average of $12,220 in tuition and fees each year.
Valpo excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list.
Request Information
Saint Joseph’s University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. St. Joe's is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Philadelphia.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at St. Joe’s are $18,144 per year.
St. Joe’s also claimed a spot on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.
Full Social Sciences at Saint Joseph’s University Report
Request Information
Creighton University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. Creighton is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Omaha.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Creighton are $19,096 a year.
Creighton excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Creighton University
Request Information
With a ranking of #8, University of North Dakota did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their graduate certificate. UND is a large public school located in the city of Grand Forks.
UND graduate students pay an average of $18,968 in tuition and fees each year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UND also is in the top 15% of our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking.
Request Information
University of Central Arkansas came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. UCA is a large public school located in the small city of Conway.
UCA graduate students pay an average of $11,835 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Social Sciences at University of Central Arkansas Report
Request Information
Western Illinois University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #10 on the list. WIU is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Macomb.
WIU graduate students pay an average of $12,182 in tuition and fees each year.
Request Information
Lindenwood University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. Lindenwood University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Saint Charles.
Lindenwood University graduate students pay an average of $9,784 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Lindenwood University
Request Information
Texas Woman’s University landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value graduate certificate social sciences programs. Located in the midsize city of Denton, TWU is a public school with a large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at TWU are $15,048 per year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Texas Woman’s University
Request Information
West Chester University of Pennsylvania did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #13 on the list. Located in the large suburb of West Chester, WCUPA is a public school with a large student population.
WCUPA graduate students pay an average of $16,758 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Social Sciences at West Chester University of Pennsylvania Report
Request Information
University of North Alabama came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. UNA is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Florence.
UNA graduate students pay an average of $13,860 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Social Sciences at University of North Alabama Report
Request Information
Montclair State University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. Montclair State is a very large public school located in the large suburb of Montclair.
Montclair State graduate students pay an average of $13,519 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Social Sciences at Montclair State University Report
Request Information
Missouri State University - Springfield came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Missouri State is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Springfield.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Missouri State are $12,618 a year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Missouri State University - Springfield
Request Information
Saint Cloud State University came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. St. Cloud State University is a large public school located in the city of Saint Cloud.
St. Cloud State University graduate students pay an average of $13,412 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Social Sciences at Saint Cloud State University Report
Request Information
Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #16 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Texas A&M College Station are $24,106 per year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Texas A&M College Station also did well on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Social Sciences at Texas A&M University - College Station Report
Request Information
Wichita State University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large city of Wichita, WSU is a public college with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at WSU are $15,323 a year.
Read full report on Social Sciences at Wichita State University
Request Information
University of Nebraska - Lincoln landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value graduate certificate social sciences programs. Located in the city of Lincoln, UNL is a public school with a very large student population.
UNL graduate students pay an average of $19,541 in tuition and fees each year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, UNL also did well on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Request Information
San Jose State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #21 on the list. San Jose State is a very large public school located in the large city of San Jose.
San Jose State graduate students pay an average of $18,790 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Social Sciences at San Jose State University Report
Request Information
With a ranking of #21, Villanova University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their graduate certificate. Villanova is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Villanova.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Villanova are $21,199 a year.
Villanova excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools list.
Request InformationHonorable Mentions
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 Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 23 | Texas State University | San Marcos, TX |
| 24 | University of Wyoming | Laramie, WY |
| 25 | University of Memphis | Memphis, TN |
| 26 | Texas Tech University | Lubbock, TX |
| 27 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | Omaha, NE |
| 28 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 29 | University of Nevada - Reno | Reno, NV |
Social Sciences by Region
View the Best Value Social Sciences Graduate Certificate Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Social Sciences Rankings
Majors Related to Social Sciences
Social Sciences Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Political Science & Government | 49,282 |
| Economics | 49,055 |
| Sociology | 38,475 |
| General Social Sciences | 18,997 |
| International Relations & National Security | 14,306 |
| Anthropology | 11,415 |
| Criminology | 11,039 |
| Geography & Cartography | 8,526 |
| Other Social Sciences | 2,414 |
| Urban Studies | 1,507 |
| Sociology & Anthropology | 541 |
| Archeology | 339 |
| Demography & Population Studies | 88 |
Most Popular Majors Related to Social Sciences
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Education | 327,871 |
| 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 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 AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Course Advisor provides higher-education, college and university, degree, program, career, salary, and other helpful information to students, faculty, institutions, and other internet audiences. Presented information and data are subject to change. Inclusion on this website does not imply or represent a direct relationship with the company, school, or brand. Information, though believed correct at time of publication, may not be correct, and no warranty is provided. Contact the schools to verify any information before relying on it. Financial aid may be available for those who qualify. The displayed options may include sponsored or recommended results, not necessarily based on your preferences.
© Course Advisor – All Rights Reserved.