Best Liberal Arts Schools Near Rapid City, SD (2026)

Updated September 6, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Rapid City, South Dakota has 5 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs, with tuition ranging from $8,294 to $18,845 per year for indexed programs. Rapid City has a population of about 76,836. Median household income is $65,712 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 36.4% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Rapid City, SD metro area, the top-earning liberal arts-related role is Management Analyst at a median $92,710 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Liberal Arts Schools to Rapid City

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer liberal arts programs near Rapid City, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Rapid City city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Rapid City. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Rapid City, SD 0.8 miles from Rapid City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
66.5 BOC Score
Graduation rate 57%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $72,257
Avg net price $20,183/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 84%
  • Programs offered: 31

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Western Dakota Technical College

Rapid City, SD 2.0 miles from Rapid City
  • 2 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
60.4 BOC Score
Graduation rate 54%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $40,240
Avg net price $12,670/yr
Tuition
In‑state$8,294
Out‑of‑state$8,294
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 36

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#3

National American University-Rapid City

Rapid City, SD 3.4 miles from Rapid City
  • 4 year
  • Exclusively online
16.7 BOC Score
Graduation rate 24%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $37,325
Avg net price $31,062/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 37%
  • Programs offered: 28

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all South Dakota schools on the South Dakota liberal arts page.

Liberal Arts Wages Near Rapid City

Rapid City is part of the Rapid City, SD metro area (BLS area code 39660). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to South Dakota statewide.

Occupation Median Wage Source COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Public Relations Specialist $81,330 Rapid City, SD $91,177
Management Analyst $92,710 Rapid City, SD $103,935
Technical Writer $63,350 SD statewide $71,020
News Analyst, Reporter, or Journalist $45,230 Rapid City, SD $50,706
Editor $56,730 SD statewide $63,599
Training and Development Specialist $64,990 Rapid City, SD $72,859
Human Resources Specialist $74,980 Rapid City, SD $84,058

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

Rapid City at a Glance

Metric Value Source
Population 76,836 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income $65,712 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ 36.4% Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100) 89.2 (below U.S. average) BEA RPP 2024
Liberal Arts-related employment in Pennington County 339 workers, 44 establishments BLS QCEW 2024 annual

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited liberal arts schools are near Rapid City, SD?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs near Rapid City. The closest is South Dakota School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City, SD (0.8 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Oglala Lakota College (69.0 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying liberal arts roles near Rapid City?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying liberal arts-related roles near Rapid City are: Management Analyst ($92,710), Public Relations Specialist ($81,330), Human Resources Specialist ($74,980). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with South Dakota statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Is Rapid City an affordable place to study liberal arts?

Rapid City’s median household income of $65,712 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Rapid City while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and South Dakota public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Learn More About Liberal Arts Programs

Other Programs Available in Rapid City

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Rapid City:

Data verified: September 6, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

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