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Best Value Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota

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2023 Best Value Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota

Identifying High-Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

5 Schools Ranked
$12,817 Avg Tuition & Fees*

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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 or bootcamp that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota ranking. This report analyzed 5 schools in South Dakota to see which ones offered the best value graduate certificate programs for students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

Top Value Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota

Learn more about these excellent schools below:

#1

University of South Dakota

Vermillion, South Dakota
56 Total Awards
$12,768 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found University of South Dakota to be the best value school for students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in South Dakota. USD is a public institution located in Vermillion, South Dakota. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 56 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at USD are $12,768 a year.

You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at USD. In fact, around 58% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

USD not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #2 on our Best Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota list.

Read More…

#2

Dakota State University

Madison, South Dakota
7 Total Awards
$11,931 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent graduate certificate programs at Dakota State University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value schools in South Dakota. Dakota State is a public institution located in Madison, South Dakota. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Dakota State are $11,931 per year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Dakota State. In 2019-2020 about 96% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Dakota State also took the #3 spot in our Best Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota rankings.

Read full report on Dakota State University

#3

Mount Marty University

Yankton, South Dakota
1 Total Awards
$9,650 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent graduate certificate programs at Mount Marty University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best value schools in South Dakota. Mount Marty is a private not-for-profit institution located in Yankton, South Dakota. The school has a small population, and it awarded 1 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Mount Marty are $9,650 per year.

One thing to take note of is that Mount Marty does offer online graduate classes in some areas. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 91% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Mount Marty is ranked #1 for overall quality in South Dakota.

Read More…

#4

South Dakota State University

Brookings, South Dakota
27 Total Awards
$16,917 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 5 schools in South Dakota that were part of this year’s value ranking, South Dakota State University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in Brookings, South Dakota, the fairly large public school handed out 27 graduate certificate awards in 2020-2021.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at South Dakota State are $16,917 per year.

Online graduate courses are available at South Dakota State, 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 45% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, South Dakota State is ranked #4 for overall quality in South Dakota.

Read full report on South Dakota State University

#5

Dakota Wesleyan University

Mitchell, South Dakota
24 Total Awards
$15,300 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Dakota Wesleyan University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota list. Dakota Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Mitchell, South Dakota. The school has a very small population, and it awarded 24 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Dakota Wesleyan University graduate students pay an average of $15,300 in tuition and fees each year.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at Dakota Wesleyan University. In fact, around 31% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Dakota Wesleyan University also made our Best Graduate Certificate Schools in South Dakota list, coming in at #5.

Full Dakota Wesleyan University Report

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Notes and References

Footnotes

*These averages are for the top 5 schools only.

References

  • 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.

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