New Bedford, Massachusetts has 5 accredited schools offering philosophy programs, with tuition ranging from $11,808 to $70,630 per year for indexed programs. New Bedford has a population of about 100,731. Median household income is $56,025 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 16.8% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area, the top-earning philosophy-related role is Lawyers at a median $133,000 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Philosophy Schools to New Bedford
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer philosophy programs near New Bedford, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from New Bedford 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:
BOCSCORE
- 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 New Bedford.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
57%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$68,804
Avg net price
$20,927/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 64%
- Programs offered: 79
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Acceptance rate
88%
Graduation rate
54%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$57,466
Avg net price
$16,383/yr
TuitionIn‑state$11,808
Out‑of‑state$17,948
Key stats
- Retention rate: 76%
- Programs offered: 69
Source:Accreditor: New England Commission on Higher Education · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
77%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$67,725
Avg net price
$29,822/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 84%
- Programs offered: 40
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
82%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$77,745
Avg net price
$33,016/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 85%
- Programs offered: 49
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
56%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$65,865
Avg net price
$17,707/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 72%
- Programs offered: 96
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
92%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$84,803
Avg net price
$25,496/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 96%
- Programs offered: 51
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
91%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$92,538
Avg net price
$30,915/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 97%
- Programs offered: 118
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
77%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$63,494
Avg net price
$25,265/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 83%
- Programs offered: 60
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Massachusetts schools on the Massachusetts philosophy page.
Philosophy Wages Near New Bedford
New Bedford is part of the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area (BLS area code 39300). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Massachusetts statewide.
| Occupation |
Median Wage |
Source |
COL-Adjusted (US=100) |
| Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary |
$93,930 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$92,269 |
| Writers and Authors |
$70,620 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$69,371 |
| Lawyers |
$133,000 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$130,648 |
| Clergy |
$59,800 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$58,743 |
| Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education |
$92,110 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$90,481 |
| Editors |
$76,180 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$74,833 |
| Management Analysts |
$100,360 |
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA |
$98,585 |
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.
New Bedford at a Glance
| Metric |
Value |
Source |
| Population |
100,731 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income |
$56,025 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ |
16.8% |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) |
101.8 (above U.S. average) |
BEA RPP 2024 |
Other New Bedford-Area Cities With Philosophy Programs
- Fall River, MA – 8.7 mi away (88,930 pop)
- Taunton, MA – 17.9 mi away (56,843 pop)
- East Providence, RI – 23.3 mi away (47,337 pop)
- Newport, RI – 23.5 mi away (24,779 pop)
- Warwick, RI – 25.4 mi away (81,579 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited philosophy schools are near New Bedford, MA?
Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering philosophy programs near New Bedford. The closest is University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth in North Dartmouth, MA (4.3 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Wheaton College (Massachusetts) (24.0 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying philosophy roles near New Bedford?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying philosophy-related roles near New Bedford are: Lawyers ($133,000), Management Analysts ($100,360), Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary ($93,930). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Massachusetts statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Fall River instead of New Bedford?
Fall River, MA is 8.7 miles from New Bedford and has its own set of local philosophy programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is New Bedford an affordable place to study philosophy?
New Bedford’s median household income of $56,025 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in New Bedford while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Massachusetts 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 Philosophy Programs
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Data verified: September 5, 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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