Source: IPEDS, as of September 29, 2026. Cost is resident tuition plus required fees, 2023-24.
Bachelor's Degrees in Nevada
1
Meet the Ranking Threshold
1
Median Resident Tuition and Fees
$8,994
With a Fully Online Option
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General Studies Bachelor's Degrees in Nevada
General studies bachelor's degrees in Nevada are one program, the University of Nevada-Reno's Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies, and it ranks 16th in the country. UNR scores 72.1 on a 61% graduation rate, 62 degrees a year and $8,994 in resident tuition and required fees, and the degree can be completed online. It's public, so a Nevada resident pays $8,994 and an out-of-state student pays $25,950, nearly three times as much.
What makes the score is the combination rather than any one figure. A 61% graduation rate at a public price under $9,000, with a program big enough to award 62 degrees in a year, is a pairing few general studies bachelor's programs manage, and UNR's place in the top 20 nationally reflects it. Because it's the only general studies bachelor's in Nevada, the choice at this level isn't between programs but between UNR and leaving the state, or between UNR and a different major at another Nevada university, since no private college in the state awards the degree.
The Best General Studies Bachelor's Degree in Nevada
The best general studies bachelor's degrees in Nevada 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 Nevada. Each needed at least 10 graduates in the latest year to be ranked.
1
University of Nevada-Reno
Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies
Nevada
72.1- Public
- Fully Online Option
- College graduation rate
- 61%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $8,994 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 62
About the Program
Two minors stand in for a major here. You complete two distinct minors offered by the university, then a 15-unit breadth requirement outside them with at least 9 units upper division. But the declared minors for the cluster aren't earned at graduation, so what you earn is the degree itself. The degree is intended for you if your academic or career interests fall outside the existing majors.
One of the two minors can be a custom minor, which is how you study a field that has no established minor. The rules are tight. A custom minor must contain 18-24 units with a minimum of 9 upper division, it must have a theme, and it can't be in a field that already has an established minor, so you're proposing something new instead of reshaping what exists.
Online is possible, but it narrows the degree. You can complete it in person, online or through a combination of both, yet minor availability is limited for online study to Addiction Treatment Services, Communication and Political Science. Since you need two minors, that leaves little room to choose. Tuition and fees for online study are what is listed for on-campus degrees.
Entry starts partway through college, because you must have completed a minimum of 60 undergraduate credits from an accredited institution. You also can't declare the major until you've met an academic advisor in the Exploratory and Pre-Professional Advising Center. And if you already hold a bachelor's, this isn't a route to another, since the degree can't be used as a second bachelor's degree or second major. It was formerly listed as General Studies.
How Much Does a General Studies Bachelor's Degree Cost in Nevada?
A general studies bachelor's degree in Nevada costs $8,994 a year in resident tuition and required fees for 2023-24 at the University of Nevada-Reno, the only program at this level, and $25,950 for a non-resident. With one program there's no median to speak of, so the useful comparison is against the state's four community college general studies associates, which charge $3,144 to $4,110: the bachelor's years at UNR cost a resident a little over twice what the associate years cost. The out-of-state figure is nearly three times the resident one, so establishing Nevada residency before you enroll matters more than anything else on the bill.
The Silver State Opportunity Grant, Nevada's need-based grant for low-income, college-ready students, is used at College of Southern Nevada, Great Basin College, Nevada State University, Truckee Meadows Community College and Western Nevada College, so it covers the community college half of a transfer route rather than UNR itself. If you start at one of those four colleges, you'll need to be a Nevada resident for tuition purposes and enrolled in at least 12 credit hours that apply to your program to receive it.
How Does Credit Transfer Into a General Studies Bachelor's Degree in Nevada?
Credit transfers into a general studies bachelor's degree in Nevada most cleanly as a finished associate degree, because the Nevada System of Higher Education guarantees that a completed Associate of Arts, Associate of Science or Associate of Business from an NSHE community college automatically fulfills all lower-division general education requirements at any other NSHE institution. UNR is an NSHE institution, so a student arriving from Western Nevada, Great Basin, Truckee Meadows or the College of Southern Nevada with an AA, AS or AB starts the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies with general education settled.
Individual courses move just as predictably. All NSHE courses share the same prefix, number, title and credit value, so a course taken at any Nevada community college is recognized as the same course at UNR, and you can read your own transcript against the degree's requirements before you apply.
Two things to ask UNR directly. First, how it treats a general studies associate that was awarded under a label other than AA, AS or AB, since the automatic rule names only those three. Second, how many credits beyond the general education core it will apply toward the interdisciplinary studies major and how many must be taken at UNR, because the guarantee settles general education and leaves the rest to the university's own rules.
What Do Jobs With a General Studies Bachelor's Degree Pay in Nevada?
Jobs open to a general studies bachelor's degree in Nevada 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 Nevada
To choose a general studies bachelor's degree program in Nevada, you're really deciding whether UNR's Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies fits, since it's the only one. The case for it is plain: 61% of its students graduate, it costs residents $8,994, it can be finished online, and it sits 16th in the national bachelor's ranking. The case against it is only that a single program can't suit everyone, and if you need a campus outside Reno or a different degree name on the diploma, the alternative is another major, not another general studies program.
If you're starting from a community college, the path is set: earn an AA, AS or AB at Western Nevada, Great Basin, Truckee Meadows or CSN, carry the general education guarantee into UNR, and ask UNR before you transfer how many of your remaining credits count toward the major. If you're coming from out of state, ask what it takes to be classified as a resident for tuition purposes, because the gap between $8,994 and $25,950 is the largest number on this page.
If you're starting with an associate degree, the general studies associate degrees in Nevada have their own page.