Best Online Master’s Programs in Missouri 2023

Published: May 11, 2022
Updated: Sep 8, 2023

Find the best online colleges in Missouri ranked by the academic success of faculty and alumni associated with the colleges and universities and their online degree programs. Faculty and alumni with influential ideas are the foundation of respectable online degree programs employers can trust.

Top 10 Online Master's Programs in Missouri

University of Missouri
Saint Louis University
Missouri University of Science and Technology
Webster University
Truman State University
Missouri State University
Park University
Southeast Missouri State University
University of Central Missouri
University of Missouri–St. Louis

Southwest Baptist University 96%
Missouri State University 94%
Culver–Stockton College 93%
Maryville University 92%
Northwest Missouri State University 86%
Missouri University of Science and Technology 85%
Southeast Missouri State University 79%
University of Missouri 77%
University of Central Missouri 76%
Lindenwood University 75%

Columbia College 23 to 1
Missouri State University 20 to 1
Northwest Missouri State University 19 to 1
University of Missouri–St. Louis 19 to 1
Southeast Missouri State University 19 to 1
Missouri University of Science and Technology 19 to 1
University of Missouri 18 to 1
Missouri Baptist University 18 to 1
Missouri Western State University 16 to 1
Park University 15 to 1

Saint Louis University $48,824
Rockhurst University $40,480
Missouri Baptist University $30,548
Webster University $28,700
Culver–Stockton College $28,495
Maryville University $27,166
William Woods University $26,730
Southwest Baptist University $26,128
Stephens College $24,570
Columbia College $23,840

A.T. Still University $40,978
Saint Louis University $21,960
Rockhurst University $16,524
Maryville University $14,346
Webster University $13,500
University of Missouri–St. Louis $12,528
Missouri Baptist University $10,670
Missouri University of Science and Technology $10,452
University of Missouri $9,950
Nazarene Theological Seminary $9,810

Missouri Baptist University
Culver–Stockton College
William Woods University
Nazarene Theological Seminary
Avila University
Southwest Baptist University
Missouri Western State University
Columbia College
Maryville University
Lincoln University, Missouri

University of Missouri–St. Louis 57%
Webster University 59%
Truman State University 61%
Missouri Baptist University 62%
Stephens College 64%
Rockhurst University 67%
William Woods University 68%
Avila University 68%
Saint Louis University 70%
Lindenwood University 75%

Saint Louis University 9 to 1
William Woods University 10 to 1
Stephens College 11 to 1
Webster University 12 to 1
Avila University 12 to 1
Southwest Baptist University 12 to 1
Maryville University 13 to 1
Rockhurst University 14 to 1
Truman State University 14 to 1
Culver–Stockton College 14 to 1

Northwest Missouri State University $5,461
Lincoln University, Missouri $6,720
Missouri Western State University $6,900
Missouri State University $7,196
Southeast Missouri State University $7,461
University of Central Missouri $7,758
Truman State University $8,365
Missouri University of Science and Technology $9,960
University of Missouri $10,017
University of Missouri–St. Louis $12,015

Southwest Baptist University $5,004
Lincoln University, Missouri $5,608
Missouri State University $5,760
Southeast Missouri State University $5,858
Culver–Stockton College $6,000
Northwest Missouri State University $6,301
Park University $6,435
Missouri Western State University $6,840
William Woods University $7,200
University of Central Missouri $7,836

Table of Contents

Featured Programs

Colleges and Universities in Missouri

Tuition costs in Missouri fall below the national average, allowing students access to many affordable options. For example, at Missouri State University, the second largest public school, tuition fees are around $7,000. Students of actor John Goodman’s alma mater can major in fields like religious studies, history, and business, and even have the option of earning an associate degree in arts or a bachelor’s in business at the university’s sister school in China. Missouri also offers more than 40 private schools.

Find college admissions consultants in your state.

Tuition and student populations vary greatly among these schools, but students who attend these higher education institutes also have the option to attend classes at other campuses. For example, Saint Louis University, a college with Jesuit roots, has campuses in both St. Louis and Madrid, Spain. Additionally, Missouri offers special loan forgiveness programs for nurses and other health professionals, including dentists, psychiatrists, and primary care physicians, who work in designated, high-need areas.

When you aren’t exploring one of its 6,000 caves, chowing down on some barbecue, or taking in a live jazz performance, Missouri can serve as the perfect place to begin a road trip. The Show Me State is bordered by eight other U.S. states, making it ideal for students love travelling and planning weekend getaways. During the week days, students can continue on their road to success by pursuing their degree at one of Missouri’s 72 higher education institutes.

See where Missouri’s many roads can take you while earning your degree at one this state’s top learning institutions.

What are Missouri’s Colleges & Universities?

Missouri’s Best Overall

Online master’s degrees offered by respected colleges and universities are generally respected by employers. The main thing to consider about your online master’s choices is whether the school name is well known and respected. In many cases, employers won’t know your degree was earned online. But even if they do, a degree from a respected college is automatically to your benefit.

We rank the colleges and universities in this list by the influence of their alumni and faculty. For master’s degree students, including online master’s degree students, having faculty who are influential in your field matters a lot. It’s a big indicator that you have the chance to get a quality education. And, knowing that you will join an alumni association with some impressive people is nice, too.

Frequently Asked Questions About Online Master’s Degrees

An online master’s degree costs about $40,000 for the average grad student. However, the cost of your online master’s degree will depend on the type of grad school you attend. In 2018-2019, the average cost for a year of tuition in a public grad school was $12,171. The average cost for a year of tuition in private, non-profit grad school was $27,776. An online master’s degree will usually cost about the same as a traditional master’s degree. Some schools will charge 5-10% more for online courses. This added cost pays for the technology and specialized training needed for online instruction. But getting a master’s degree online can also help you save money. The costs above don’t include expenses like housing, transportation, or certain campus fees. As an online grad student, you can save a lot of money by avoiding these added expenses. Many online master’s degree programs are also accelerated. Most master’s degree programs are designed to be completed in two years. But you may be able to earn your online master’s degree in as little as 12-18 months. Earning an accelerated online master’s degree can save you money on tuition.

If this is your first time taking an online course, the experience may require some adjustment. While you’ll generally learn the same content and take the same exams as your on-campus peers, the medium will likely require you to manage much of this experience independently. You’ll be accountable for your own time management, your ability to harness the technology at your fingertips, and your ability to focus on the lectures, lessons, and assignments at hand. This means you’ll need to create a suitable workspace for yourself, maintain a realistic schedule, and take it upon yourself to build relationships with your instructors and classmates. With online college, your goal is to find a balance between independence and engagement.

In most cases, as long you graduate from a well-regarded, regionally-accredited online college, prospective employers won’t look sideways at your degree. In fact, unless you attend an exclusively online college or university, there will likely be no specific indicator on your degree, transcript or resume differentiating your school from its brick-and-mortar counterpart. This means that your employer will likely only differentiate between an online and in-person degree if you mention this distinction.

While some employers may express concern about making the adjustment from online education to in-person workplace collaboration, many other employers will view your online degree as evidence of valuable 21st Century professional skills such as independence, self-motivation, time management, and tech savvy.

The advantages of online classes are many. First and foremost, online courses give you the freedom and flexibility to attend class from anywhere that works for you, whether you’re at home, in a coffee shop, or in a quiet conference room at work. In many cases, you’ll also enjoy the convenience of asynchronous learning opportunities-educational experiences that you can complete on your own schedule. This may include pre-taped lectures, ongoing chat-board discussions, and 24/7 access to digital materials. And of course, just as there are some learners who prefer the energy of a live classroom, there are those who learn best when working in their own personal space, free from distractions. If this sounds like you, you might find the solitude of online learning to be a major advantage.

If you are a student who thrives on the dynamic energy of in-person discussion, who requires the physical surroundings of a classroom to feel engaged, or who considers the social aspects of education to be of equal importance to the actual content of your courses, online education will require some adjustment.

While there is much that can be supplanted or simulated through the online medium, some students may find that there is nothing which can replace the conversation, collaboration, and motivation that occur in an actual classroom setting. As you make the adjustment to online education, one of the biggest challenges you will likely face is overcoming this difference in order to the get the most out of your classes. Fortunately, we’ve got some great Tips for Online Education Beginners.

How do we determine Missouri's best online master's degree programs?

Methodology

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great! If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities for a bachelor’s degree, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching and whether their graduates are themselves advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence in their fields of study.

Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is freer from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

To rank the influence of schools, we first determine the influence of scholars and professionals based on the number of citations and publications they have had over the past 10 years. In addition to publications and citations, we consider the web links to and from these sources, and the page views of those sources. We then match the influential people to their alma maters and institutions of employment, so that their influence is attributed to those schools. Our machine-learning Influence Ranking algorithm produces a numerical score of academic achievements, merits, and citations across Wikipedia, wikidata, Crossref, Semantic Scholar and an ever-growing body of data. If you are interested in exploring how and why we rank by influence, explore our methodology in more depth.

Median Salaries of Top Careers in Missouri

The following graph depicts the average salaries of top occupations in different industries in Missouri.

Source: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

Annual Salary

112760Personal Financial Advisors

114090Electronics Engineers, Except Computer

119570Actuaries

169760Physicists

189620Chief Executives

Best Online Master’s Programs in Missouri 2023

Top 10 Online Master's Programs in Missouri

Featured Programs

Colleges and Universities in Missouri

What are Missouri’s Colleges & Universities?

Median Salaries of Top Careers in Missouri

Best Online Master’s Program in Missouri 2022

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