Aside from getting tuition reimbursement assistance from an employer or a scholarship, attending a private business school will be a costly endeavor no matter where a student may choose to enroll. Students paid an average of $31,833 in tuition and required fees during the 2010-11 academic year at the 10 least expensive private business schools that reported the data to U.S. News in a 2010 survey.
In the same year, in-state students at the 10 least expensive public business schools paid $9,589, on average, and out-of-state students paid an average of $19,832.
The Howard University School of Business, where students paid $25,215 in tuition and fees during the 2010-11 academic year, is the least expensive private business school in the country. The Syracuse University Whitman School of Management, with an annual cost of $36,162, rounds out the top 10 least expensive private business programs. In all, seven of the schools on the list are ranked; however, none cracks the top 50 of U.S. News's rankings of Best Business Schools.
[See the 10 most expensive private business schools.]
Only schools that reported the yearly cost of tuition and fees were included in this analysis. Private schools that provided tuition and fees data to U.S. News based on per-credit hour costs or overall costs for the entire length of the program were excluded. Also, business schools that were designated by U.S. News as Unranked were not considered for this report. U.S. News did not calculate a numerical ranking for Unranked programs because the program did not supply U.S. News with enough key statistical data to be numerically ranked.
Below is a table of the 10 least expensive private business schools based on tuition and required fees (figures do not include room and board, books, and other miscellaneous costs):
| Business school | Tuition & fees (2010-11) | U.S. News b-school rank |
|---|---|---|
| Howard University (DC) | $25,215 | 91 |
| Bellarmine University (Rubel) (KY) | $28,500 | RNP* |
| Baylor University (Hankamer) (TX) | $30,194 | 60 |
| American University (Kogod) (DC) | $30,374 | RNP |
| Rollins College (Crummer) (FL) | $32,450 | 107 |
| Texas Christian University (Neeley) | $32,880 | 80 |
| Rochester Institute of Technology (Saunders) (NY) | $33,453 | 63 |
| Bentley University (McCallum) (MA) | $34,484 | 73 |
| Suffolk University (Sawyer) (MA) | $34,620 | RNP |
| Syracuse University (Whitman) (NY) | $36,162 | 69 |
*RNP denotes an institution that is ranked in the bottom one fourth of its ranking category. U.S. News calculates a rank for the school but has decided not to publish it.
Don't see your school in the top 10? Access the U.S. News Business School Compass to find tuition data, complete rankings, and much more.
U.S. News surveyed more than 400 schools for our 2010 survey of business programs. Schools self-reported a myriad of data regarding their academic programs and the makeup of their student body, among other areas, making U.S. News's data the most accurate and detailed collection of college facts and figures of its kind. While U.S. News uses much of this survey data to rank schools for our annual Best Business Schools rankings, the data can also be useful when examined on a smaller scale. U.S. News will now produce lists of data, separate from the overall rankings, meant to provide students and parents a means to find which schools excel, or have room to grow, in specific areas that are important to them. While the data comes from the schools themselves, these lists are not related to, and have no influence over, U.S. News's rankings of Best Colleges or Best Graduate Schools.


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John Shanks of MA 5:33PM August 16, 2011
TomGibbs of UT 5:24PM July 29, 2011