2023 Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Also there are many trade schools and bpptcamp 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 Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. This report analyzed 39 schools in the Southwest Region to see which ones offered the best graduate certificate programs for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.
View our full ranking methodology.
Featured schools near , edit
Top Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region of the U.S.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Texas A&M University - College Station to be the best school for students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the Southwest Region .
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Texas A&M College Station. In 2019-2020 about 23% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Arizona State University - Skysong is a great place for students working on their graduate certificate.
Since the graduate programs at ASU - Skysong are primarily online school, so it is a great choice for returning adults and students who work full time.
Out of the 39 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas at Austin landed the # 3 spot on the list.
Online graduate courses are available at UT Austin, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2019-2020 year, about 66% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Out of the 39 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, St. Mary’s University landed the # 4 spot on the list.
St. Mary’s does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In fact, around 84% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Texas Christian University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region list.
On average, graduate certificate students take out $19,027 in loans while pursuing their degree.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at TCU. In fact, around 82% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Southern Methodist University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #6 on the list.
Online graduate courses are available at SMU, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2019-2020 year, about 40% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #7, University of Phoenix - Arizona did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their graduate certificate.
Online graduate courses are available at UOPX - Arizona, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 99% took at least some of their classes online.
Texas Tech University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate programs.
One thing to take note of is that Texas Tech does offer online graduate classes in some areas. During the 2019-2020 year, about 49% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Oklahoma State University - Main Campus landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate programs.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at OSU. During the 2019-2020 year, about 60% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Angelo State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #10 on the list.
Angelo State does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 88% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #11, University of Houston - Downtown did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their graduate certificate.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UH Downtown. In fact, around 98% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Grand Canyon University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #12 on the list.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Grand Canyon University does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 96% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
University of Tulsa ranked #13 on this year’s Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region list.
One thing to take note of is that University of Tulsa does offer online graduate classes in some areas. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 10% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
The University of Texas at Arlington ranked #14 on this year’s Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region list.
UT Arlington does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In fact, around 65% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Sam Houston State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #15 on the list.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at SHSU. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 68% took at least some of their classes online.
Arizona State University - Tempe came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.
Online graduate courses are available at ASU - Tempe, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 42% took at least some of their classes online.
The University of Texas at Dallas did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #17 on the list.
UT Dallas does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 83% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #18, Northeastern State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their graduate certificate.
NSU does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 76% took at least some of their classes online.
University of Arizona came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since University of Arizona does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 37% took at least some of their classes online.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #20 on the list.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UT Rio Grande Valley. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 92% took at least some of their classes online.
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #21 on the list.
Graduate Certificate recipients from University of Oklahoma accumulate an average of $26,469 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at University of Oklahoma. In 2019-2020 about 54% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Texas Woman’s University landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate programs.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at TWU. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 88% took at least some of their classes online.
Northern Arizona University landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate programs.
By the time they get their graduate certificate, students from this school have racked up an average of $23,445 in student loans.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at NAU. In 2019-2020 about 54% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
With a ranking of #24, Lamar University did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their graduate certificate.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Lamar University. In 2019-2020 about 95% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
University of North Texas came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UNT. In fact, around 50% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Narrow Schools by State
View Best Graduate Certificate Graduate Certificate Schools Nationwide >
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
Request Info | Southern New Hampshire University You have goals. Southern New Hampshire University can help you get there. Whether you need a bachelor's degree to get into a career or want a master's degree to move up in your current career, SNHU has an online program for you. Find your degree from over 200 online programs. Learn More > |