Best General Studies Bachelor's Degrees in Maine, Ranked (2026)

General Studies Bachelor's Degrees in Maine

General studies bachelor's degrees in Maine are three programs, and the two that meet the ranking threshold are both University of Maine System campuses. The University of Maine at Farmington scores 44.7, 105th in the national bachelor's ranking, on 21 degrees in the latest year, a 52% graduation rate and $10,989 a year in resident tuition and required fees for 2023-24. The University of Maine in Orono scores 41.6, 117th, on 14 degrees, a 55% graduation rate and $12,606, and it's the one ranked program you can finish fully online. Farmington takes the top score by awarding more degrees at a lower price, even though Orono finishes a slightly larger share of its students.

The third program, at Saint Joseph's College of Maine in Standish, awarded 6 degrees at $42,834 and sits below the threshold without a score. It's private, online and has the highest graduation rate of the three at 66%, so for a student who needs online study and can get the private price down it belongs in the comparison even unranked.

Residency matters more at this level than at the state's community colleges. Non-residents pay $23,079 at Farmington and $35,346 at Orono, more than double the resident rate at either campus. Most Mainers who reach these programs arrive through the community colleges, and the Transfer ME agreement announced on July 31, 2024, took the application step out of that move, which is covered below.

The 2 Best General Studies Bachelor's Degrees in Maine

The best general studies bachelor's degrees in Maine are ranked below by their national score, from the national bachelor's degree ranking. The number on each card is the program's place in Maine. Each needed at least 10 graduates in the latest year to be ranked.

1. 1

   University of Maine at Farmington

   Maine

   44.7

   • Public

   College graduation rate

   52%

   In-state tuition and fees

   $10,989 a year

   Degrees awarded, latest year

   21

   • College graduation rate percentile 56 / 100
   • In-state tuition and fees percentile 41 / 100
   • Degrees awarded, latest year percentile 29 / 100

   About the Program

   Some 2,100 students attend University of Maine at Farmington, a public university in Farmington, Maine. During the most recent year on record it awarded 21 bachelor's degrees, a count at the 29th percentile for size. Across the whole college, 52% of students finish, which is a higher rate than 56% of the institutions behind this list. Residents pay $10,989 a year in tuition and fees, while out-of-state students pay $23,079. Nearly everyone who applies gets in, since 97% of applicants are admitted. Its strongest mark is the graduation rate of its college, at the 56th percentile.

2. 2

   University of Maine

   Maine

   41.6

   • Public
   • Fully Online Option

   College graduation rate

   55%

   In-state tuition and fees

   $12,606 a year

   Degrees awarded, latest year

   14

   • College graduation rate percentile 66 / 100
   • In-state tuition and fees percentile 31 / 100
   • Degrees awarded, latest year percentile 11 / 100

   About the Program

   Based in Orono, Maine, University of Maine is a public university with 12,029 students on its rolls. The program's last federal report shows 14 bachelor's degrees conferred, so it is larger than 11 in every 100 programs measured here. Of the students who start at University of Maine, 55% graduate, and that beats 66 in every 100 institutions on this measure. Tuition and fees run $12,606 a year in state against $35,346 out of state, so on price it sits at the 31st percentile. Nothing in the degree requires attending in person, since it is offered fully online. Nearly everyone who applies gets in, since 97% of applicants are admitted. On the graduation rate of its college it does best, reaching the 66th percentile.

Other General Studies Bachelor's Degrees in Maine

The other general studies bachelor's degrees in Maine awarded fewer than 10 degrees in the latest year or did not report a figure the ranking uses, so they are listed here without a score. That says something about size and nothing on its own about quality.

Source: IPEDS, as of September 29, 2026. Graduation rate is the college's, for first-time, full-time students.

How Much Does a General Studies Bachelor's Degree Cost in Maine?

A general studies bachelor's degree in Maine costs a median of $12,606 a year in tuition and required fees for 2023-24, which is Orono's figure, with Farmington below it at $10,989 and Saint Joseph's College of Maine above it at $42,834. The two public campuses are $1,617 apart for residents and $12,267 apart for non-residents, at $23,079 and $35,346, and Saint Joseph's charges every student the same $42,834.

State aid for a bachelor's student is the Maine State Grant Program, which provides need-based grants to Maine undergraduate students of all ages. For the 2026-27 academic year, the maximum grant amount for the Maine State Grant Program is $2,500, which covers just under a quarter of Farmington's resident tuition and fees and about a fifth of Orono's, so it's a help rather than a solution at this level. If you're finishing the degree while working, students enrolled less than full-time, but at least half-time may be eligible for up to $1,250. The grant is for Maine students, so an out-of-state applicant should price either campus at the full non-resident rate and look to the university's own aid instead.

How Does Credit Transfer Into a General Studies Bachelor's Degree in Maine?

Credit transfers into a general studies bachelor's degree in Maine most smoothly from a Maine community college, because the University of Maine System has written its agreements with the Maine Community College System and with nobody else. The UMS-MCCS General Education Transfer Block includes at least 34 credits of general education course work, with grades of C- or better in all courses taken from within the Maine Community College System. At Farmington or Orono, that block counts as your general education in one piece, which leaves the rest of the degree for the major and electives.

Admission itself got simpler in 2024. Under Transfer ME, after completing their associate degree, MCCS graduates can seamlessly transfer to a Maine public university of their choice without filling out an application, paying application fees, or providing essays, recommendation letters and transcripts. The words of their choice mean Farmington and Orono alike, so the decision between the two campuses is yours rather than the admissions office's.

If you're coming from Husson, Saint Joseph's or any college outside Maine, none of that applies, and each campus evaluates your transcript course by course. The questions for the receiving campus are the same either way: how many of your credits count toward the general studies major itself, how many fall into general education you've already satisfied, and how many land as electives.

What Do Jobs With a General Studies Bachelor's Degree Pay in Maine?

Jobs open to a general studies bachelor's degree in Maine pay the state medians below, from the May 2025 federal wage survey, with the national median beside each for comparison. Each row links to the salary guide for that job.

How to Choose a General Studies Bachelor's Degree Program in Maine

How to choose a general studies bachelor's degree program in Maine is mostly a choice between two University of Maine campuses that cost within $1,617 of each other and graduate within three points of each other, so the deciding factor is format. Orono's program can be finished fully online and Farmington's can't, and that will settle it for anyone working full time. If you can get to Farmington, you get the lower price, $10,989 against $12,606, and the larger program, 21 degrees a year against 14, with a 52% graduation rate against 55%.

Saint Joseph's College of Maine is the third option: online, a 66% graduation rate, 6 degrees a year, $42,834. It makes sense only if the college's own aid brings the price near the public rates, so ask for a net price before you compare. At the public campuses, ask how your community college credits map onto the major, and if you're still at a community college, ask whether your program is on the Transfer ME eligible list. Management analysts in Maine earn a median of $75,530 against $101,860 nationally, so weigh the degree's cost against Maine pay if you plan to stay.

If you're starting with an associate degree, the general studies associate degrees in Maine have their own page.