2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Social Sciences Master's Degree 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.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 339 schools in the United States to see which master's degree programs offered the best value experiences for social sciences students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
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 25 Best Schools for Affordable Quality for a Master's in Social Sciences
Our analysis found Cabrini University to be the best value school for social sciences students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. Cabrini University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Radnor.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Cabrini University are $2,318 a year.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Brigham Young University - Provo. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. BYU is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Provo.
BYU graduate students pay an average of $7,700 in tuition and fees each year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, BYU also did well on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwest Missouri State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. 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.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Minnesota State University - Mankato is a great value for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public school located in the city of Mankato.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Minnesota State Mankato are $9,308 a year.
Minnesota State Mankato also claimed a spot on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.
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Out of the 339 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, American Public University System landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the fringe town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit school with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at American Military University are $7,050 per year.
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Lasell University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree social sciences programs. Lasell is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Newton.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Lasell are $11,268 a year.
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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public college with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at SIUE are $9,316 a year.
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North Dakota State University - Main Campus came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Fargo, North Dakota State University is a public college with a large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at North Dakota State University are $12,028 per year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, North Dakota State University also did well on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Niagara University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Niagara is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Niagara University.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Niagara are $13,950 per year.
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Webster University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Webster is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Saint Louis.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Webster are $13,500 a year.
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Liberty University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
Liberty University graduate students pay an average of $8,360 in tuition and fees each year.
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Arizona State University - Skysong did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. ASU - Skysong is a very large public school located in the city of Scottsdale.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at ASU - Skysong are $9,982 per year.
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With a ranking of #13, Youngstown State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Youngstown State University is a large public school located in the city of Youngstown.
Youngstown State University graduate students pay an average of $6,931 in tuition and fees each year.
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The Graduate Center, CUNY did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. The Graduate Center is a moderately-sized public school located in the large city of New York.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at The Graduate Center are $23,640 per year.
The Graduate Center also claimed a spot on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.
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Saint Vincent College ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Latrobe, Saint Vincent is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Saint Vincent are $14,748 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Saint Vincent also did well on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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With a ranking of #16, Illinois State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Illinois State are $11,773 per year.
In addition to its great value ranking, Illinois State is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list.
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Northern Illinois University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public school with a large student population.
NIU graduate students pay an average of $11,390 in tuition and fees each year.
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Xavier University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social sciences students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the large city of Cincinnati, Xavier is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
Xavier graduate students pay an average of $12,076 in tuition and fees each year.
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Missouri State University - Springfield ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. 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.
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With a ranking of #21, Angelo State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. Angelo State is a fairly large public school located in the small city of San Angelo.
Angelo State graduate students pay an average of $14,590 in tuition and fees each year.
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Bellevue University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Bellevue, Bellevue University is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Bellevue University are $11,730 per year.
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With a ranking of #23, The University of Tampa did quite well on this year’s best value schools for social sciences students working on their master’s degree. UT is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Tampa.
UT graduate students pay an average of $12,014 in tuition and fees each year.
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Regis University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Denver, Regis U is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Regis U are $15,079 per year.
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Valparaiso University landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree social sciences programs. Located in the suburb of Valparaiso, Valpo is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Valpo are $12,220 a year.
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Additional Award Winners
This list represents the remainder of the schools awarded a Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 339 different United States social sciences schools we analyzed.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | Montclair State University | Montclair, NJ |
Honorable 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 Master's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 52 | Texas State University | San Marcos, TX |
| 53 | University of Houston - Clear Lake | Houston, TX |
| 54 | University of North Alabama | Florence, AL |
| 55 | Marquette University | Milwaukee, WI |
| 56 | University of Central Arkansas | Conway, AR |
| 57 | Wichita State University | Wichita, KS |
| 57 | University of Illinois at Springfield | Springfield, IL |
| 59 | University of California - Irvine | Irvine, CA |
| 60 | Indiana State University | Terre Haute, IN |
| 61 | University of Nebraska - Lincoln | Lincoln, NE |
| 61 | Texas A&M International University | Laredo, TX |
| 63 | San Jose State University | San Jose, CA |
| 63 | Augusta University | Augusta, GA |
| 65 | California State University - East Bay | Hayward, CA |
| 66 | Norwich University | Northfield, VT |
| 67 | California State University - Fresno | Fresno, CA |
| 67 | California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo | San Luis Obispo, CA |
Social Sciences by Region
View the Best Value Social Sciences Master's Degree 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.
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