Business Schools in New Mexico

The 47th state admitted to the union, only a little over a century ago, New Mexico is relatively new to the United States but a region with a long and rich history. Inhabited by Native Americans for thousands of years before Europeans arrived in the 16th century, the area was named Nuevo México by Spanish settlers more than 200 years before Mexico’s country was so-called (a little-known fact!) The 5th largest state by area but just the 36th most populous, New Mexico has one of the lowest population densities of any state, and its population of just over 2 million reflects its history well, with the highest percentage of Hispanic Americans and second highest of Native Americans of any state. Its economy is driven by resource extraction (including oil and minerals), farming, ranching, lumber milling, and retail industry.

Its small population leads New Mexico to have very few business schools: data from the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) shows only eight public and non-profit schools that grant undergraduate business degrees in the state. Of these, five are accredited. Choosing an accredited business degree limits your choices to a certain extent. Still, it is worth the benefits of ensuring that the program has clear objectives and proven quality outcomes while adhering to national and international standards. Accredited schools also typically offer a richer educational experience by providing interaction with real businesses.

All of the schools in this article have been accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), and International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE). They are all public or non-profit and regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC).

This article contains all the essential data you need to help choose the New Mexico business school that best suits your unique needs, based on various key factors, including tuition, financial aid, entrance exam scores, graduation rates, and more. The sections that follow describe undergraduate programs and job prospects for business school graduates in New Mexico.

Undergraduate Business Schools in New Mexico

New Mexico is one of the very most affordable states for business schools. All 5 of the accredited schools on our list have tuitions under $8,000, with the average just $5,800 and the least expensive Northern New Mexico College at only $4,560. Average financial aid is higher than the average tuition, at $7,100, so clearly, finances won’t be a reason not to go to school in New Mexico.

Graduation rates for undergraduate business degrees in New Mexico are relatively low, unfortunately. The overall average is 27%, which is among the lowest in the nation. Northern New Mexico College has the lowest graduation rate at 18%, but even the best school, the University of New Mexico, is at only 44%.

The table below shows you all the essential data you need about undergraduate business schools in New Mexico, including annual in-state tuition costs, average aid per student, acceptance rates, and graduation rates. Click any column header to sort the table based on its contents.

School	City	Tuition	Aid	Accept. Rate	Grad. Rate
Eastern New Mexico University	Portales	$5,618	$5,557	57%	32%
New Mexico Highlands University	Las Vegas	$5,550	$5,758		22%
Northern New Mexico College	Espanola	$4,560	$5,835		18%
University of New Mexico	Albuquerque	$7,340	$6,359	58%	44%
Western New Mexico University	Silver City	$5,906	$12,225		20%

Job Outlook for Business School Graduates in New Mexico

From 2016 to 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data predicts total growth of at least 5% in 32 of 37 business and management occupations across the US. The highest growth will be for market analysts and marketing specialists, at 22.8% over ten years, with financial managers coming in second at 18.7%.

New Mexico’s unemployment rate has tended recently to be more stable than that of the United States as a whole. It never got nearly as high as the national average of 10% during the Great Recession, peaking at 8.3%, but it also didn’t rebound as strongly as other states, so it has had an above-average rate since 2014; it currently sits at 4.9%, a little above the US average of 4%. About 21,000 people were employed in the business and management sector in New Mexico in 2016. The largest subgroup was general and operations managers at 3,030. The next largest subgroup was compliance officers at 2,130, one of the few states where that category is among the biggest.

According to BLS data, New Mexico ranked 45th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia for the overall average annual wage across all occupations in 2016 at $46,748, well below the national average of $57,617. Business and management occupations had a weighted average annual salary of around $83,450 that same year, about double the average wage. As is the case with most states, chief executives were the highest-paid category, but here at a more modest than usual $144,000. Most management positions fell between $90,000 and $130,000. The lowest-paid of the groups for which we have data where meeting and event planners at $48,220.

Occupation Title	BLS.gov Code	2016 Total Employment New Mexico	Mean Hourly Wage New Mexico	Mean Annual Wage New Mexico	National Growth 2016-26
Accountants and Auditors	13-2011	5,790	$32	$66,970	8.0%
Administrative Services Managers	11-3011	1,820	$43	$88,800	9.1%
Advertising and Promotions Managers	11-2011	160	$36	$75,270	5.8%
Architectural and Engineering Managers	11-9041	1,790	$72	$149,200	7.4%
Budget Analysts	13-2031	600	$36	$74,790	10.4%
Business Operations Specialists	13-1199	6,650	$34	$70,590	10.1%
Chief Executives	11-1011	70	*	*	11.9%
Compensation and Benefits Managers	11-3111	30	$60	$125,000	0.187
Compensation, and Benefits Specialists	13-1141	210	$29	$60,910	5.6%
Compliance Officers	13-1041	1,440	$32	$66,630	5.0%
Construction Managers	11-9021	1,530	$39	$81,940	8.9%
Cost Estimators	13-1051	990	$28	$58,630	10.3%
Credit Analysts	13-2041	170	$30	$62,480	11.4%
Credit Counselors	13-2071	450	$18	$37,400	5.5%
Financial Analysts	13-2051	730	$47	$96,960	4.9%
Financial Examiners	13-2061	100	$40	$82,600	8.2%
Financial Managers	11-3031	2,310	$48	$100,830	10.6%
General and Operations Managers	11-1021	14,670	$48	$100,610	7.1%
Human Resources Managers	11-3121	560	$46	$95,350	-7.8%
Human Resources Specialists	13-1071	2,570	$29	$59,420	6.9%
Information Systems Managers	11-3021	1,190	$52	$108,560	12.0%
Insurance Underwriters	13-2053	180	$31	$65,350	10.2%
Labor Relations Specialists	13-1075	280	$21	$43,540	8.5%
Loan Officers	13-2072	1,290	$30	$62,940	11.5%
Logisticians	13-1081	640	$38	$79,870	22.8%
Management Analysts	13-1111	2,570	$37	$77,140	8.8%
Market Analysts and Marketing Specialists	13-1161	1,370	$28	$57,680	10.0%
Marketing Managers	11-2021	390	$44	$90,950	6.5%
Meeting and Event Planners	13-1121	390	$20	$40,640	8.4%
Public Relations and Fundraising Managers	11-2031	200	$42	$88,170	10.8%
Purchasing Managers	11-3061	230	$50	$104,280	-5.2%
Sales Managers	11-2022	1,110	$53	$109,210	9.8%
Tax Examiners and Revenue Agents	13-2081	230	$22	$45,100	13.9%
Tax Preparers	13-2082	410	$19	$39,420	11.5%
Training and Development Managers	11-3131	110	$42	$88,090	-0.6%
Training and Development Specialists	13-1151	1,940	$27	$55,380	10.8%

Other Popular State Pages

References:
1. National Center for Education Statistics:https://nces.ed.gov/
2. AACSB, Best Business Schools:https://bestbizschools.aacsb.edu/aacsb-accredited
3. ACBSP, Business Schools:https://acbsp.org/page/accreditation-overview
4. IACBE, Business Schools:https://iacbe.org/accreditation/
5. US Bureau of Labor Statistics – Occupational Outlook Handbook, Business and Financial Occupations: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/home.htm
6. US Bureau of Labor Statistics – Employment and Wage Estimates New Mexico: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nm.htm
7. US News & World Report, 2018 Best Business Schools: https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-business-schools