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2023 Top Illinois Women's Basketball Schools

37 Colleges
$36,919 Avg Tuition & Fees*
56% Avg 4-Year Grad Rate*

When pursuing a degree in today's world, student athletes have many different options to choose from. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Best Colleges for Women's Basketball in Illinois ranking is part of that endeavor.

We analyzed 37 colleges and universities across Illinois to determine which were the best for Women's Basketball athletes in Illinois. Our ranking is based on several objective factors, including the school's overall quality and the athletic competitiveness of the school. We steer clear of subjective measures since they don't give a clear picture when determining how one school compares to another. So, even if a school has a great team, it won't place well if it is also considered a low quality college or university.

Find out more about our ranking methodology.

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Top Colleges in Illinois for Women's Basketball athletes in Illinois

See which schools came out on top of our ranking:

1
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

Our 2023 rankings named Northwestern University the best school for Women’s Basketball athletes in Illinois working on their bachelor’s degree. Northwestern is located in Evanston, Illinois and, has a large student population. In , this school awarded 2,688 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. The Women’s Basketball team at Northwestern brought home $250,122 in revenue in a single year. With a perfect academic progress rate of 1000, the team is showing that they know how to hit the books, too. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 99%. In addition to its Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Northwestern is ranked #1 for overall quality in Illinois. Read full sports report on Northwestern University

2
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DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois

Out of the 37 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, DePaul University landed the #2 spot on the list. This large private not-for-profit school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 3,047 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at DePaul made $3,850,261 in revenue. With a perfect academic progress rate of 1000, the team is showing that they know how to hit the books, too. In addition to its great ranking here, DePaul is in the top 20% of all schools on our overall quality list. Read More…

3
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Wheaton College Illinois
Wheaton, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Wheaton College Illinois. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball athletes in Illinois list. Wheaton College Illinois is a small private not-for-profit school located in Wheaton, Illinois that handed out 648 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at Wheaton College Illinois made $268,596 in revenue. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Wheaton College Illinois also took the #4 spot in our overall quality rankings. Read More…

4
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Bradley University
Peoria, Illinois

A rank of #4 on our list means Bradley University is a great place for Women’s Basketball athletes in Illinois working on their bachelor’s degree. Peoria, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 1,190 students in . Speaking financially, the Women’s Basketball team at Bradley took home $1,781,915 in revenue. The team has a great academic progress rate of 995, signifying that team members care about their grades. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Bradley also is in the top 15% of our overall quality ranking. Read full sports report on Bradley University

5

The excellent sports programs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools for Women’s Basketball athletes in Illinois. UIUC is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 9,150 bachelor’s degrees in . The Women’s Basketball team at UIUC brought home $832,527 in revenue in a single year. The team has a great academic progress rate of 995, signifying that team members care about their grades. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. UIUC also took the #3 spot in our overall quality rankings. Read full sports report on University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

6
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University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

University of Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #6. University of Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 2,425 bachelor’s degrees in . The Women’s Basketball team at UChicago brought home $346,716 in revenue in a single year. The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. UChicago did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our overall quality list. Read full sports report on University of Chicago

7

Northern Illinois University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois list. Located in Dekalb, Illinois, the fairly large public school awarded 2,844 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . The Women’s Basketball team at NIU brought home $1,238,310 in revenue in a single year. The team members aren’t slouches in the classroom either, since the team academic progress rate is an excellent 991. Full Northern Illinois University Sports Report

8

Western Illinois University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. WIU is a medium-sized public school situated in Macomb, Illinois. It awarded 1,237 bachelor’s degrees in . The Women’s Basketball team at WIU brought home $971,815 in revenue in a single year. The team members aren’t slouches in the classroom either, since the team academic progress rate is an excellent 995. Read More…

9
Lewis crest
Lewis University
Romeoville, Illinois

Lewis University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Romeoville, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 1,124 students in . Speaking financially, the Women’s Basketball team at Lewis took home $640,974 in revenue. Read full sports report on Lewis University

10
Loyola Chicago crest
Loyola University Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

Loyola University Chicago came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 3,286 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . Speaking financially, the Women’s Basketball team at Loyola Chicago took home $2,071,018 in revenue. The great academic progress rate of 989 shows that team members perform well in the classroom, too. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Loyola Chicago also is in the top 15% of our overall quality ranking. Read full sports report on Loyola University Chicago

11
Illinois Wesleyan crest
Illinois Wesleyan University
Bloomington, Illinois

Illinois Wesleyan University landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Bloomington, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 404 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at Illinois Wesleyan made $228,247 in revenue. Illinois Wesleyan also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category. Read More…

12
Illinois State crest
Illinois State University
Normal, Illinois

With a ranking of #12, Illinois State University did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Normal, Illinois, the large public school handed out 4,495 bachelor’s degrees in . The Women’s Basketball team at Illinois State brought home $1,483,527 in revenue in a single year. The team has a respectable academic progress rate of 971. Read full sports report on Illinois State University

13
Augustana crest
Augustana College
Rock Island, Illinois

Augustana College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Augustana is located in Rock Island, Illinois and, has a small student population. In , this school awarded 755 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. Speaking financially, the Women’s Basketball team at Augustana took home $182,640 in revenue. In addition to its great ranking here, Augustana is in the top 20% of all schools on our overall quality list. Read More…

14

Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #14. SIUC is located in Carbondale, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In , this school awarded 2,016 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at SIUC made $1,278,813 in revenue. The team has a great academic progress rate of 982, signifying that team members care about their grades. Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Sports Report

15

University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #15. UIC is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a large student population. In , this school awarded 5,250 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at UIC made $1,838,416 in revenue. The team has a great academic progress rate of 977, signifying that team members care about their grades. Read full sports report on University of Illinois at Chicago

16
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Knox College
Galesburg, Illinois

Knox College ranked #16 on this year’s Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois list. Knox is located in Galesburg, Illinois and, has a small student population. In , this school awarded 332 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. Speaking financially, the Women’s Basketball team at Knox took home $175,346 in revenue. Knox also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category. Full Knox College Sports Report

17
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Elmhurst University
Elmhurst, Illinois

With a ranking of #17, Elmhurst University did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Elmhurst, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 831 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . The Women’s Basketball team at Elmhurst made $201,168 in revenue, while incurring $192,841 in expenses. So, the team made money for the school, bringing in $8,327 in profit. Read More…

18
EIU crest
Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, Illinois

Eastern Illinois University landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. EIU is located in Charleston, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In , this school awarded 1,132 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates. On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at EIU made $873,063 in revenue. The team members aren’t slouches in the classroom either, since the team academic progress rate is an excellent 991. Full Eastern Illinois University Sports Report

19
North Central crest
North Central College
Naperville, Illinois

North Central College came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Located in Naperville, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 653 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in . North Central brought in $186,648 while tallying up $185,013 in expenses for its Women’s Basketball team. Happily, this means that the team turned a profit of $1,635. Full North Central College Sports Report

20
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Benedictine University
Lisle, Illinois

Benedictine University did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #20. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Lisle, Illinois, and it awarded 686 bachelor’s degrees in . The Women’s Basketball team at Benedictine U made $501,508 in revenue, while incurring $464,770 in expenses. So, the team made money for the school, bringing in $36,738 in profit. Full Benedictine University Sports Report

21
Greenville crest
Greenville University
Greenville, Illinois

With a ranking of #21, Greenville University did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Greenville is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Greenville, Illinois. It awarded 205 bachelor’s degrees in . The team at Greenville took home $89,644 in revenue and paid out $87,278 in expenses in recent times. That boils down to a yearly profit of $2,366 for the sports team. Read full sports report on Greenville University

22
Illinois College crest
Illinois College
Jacksonville, Illinois

Illinois College landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. Illinois College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Jacksonville, Illinois. It awarded 323 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at Illinois College made $178,399 in revenue. Read More…

23

University of Illinois at Springfield did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking, coming in at #23. UIS is a small public school situated in Springfield, Illinois. It awarded 608 bachelor’s degrees in . The Women’s Basketball team at UIS brought home $398,320 in revenue in a single year. Read full sports report on University of Illinois at Springfield

24
Lake Forest crest
Lake Forest College
Lake Forest, Illinois

Lake Forest College landed the #24 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois ranking. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Lake Forest, Illinois, and it awarded 466 bachelor’s degrees in . Speaking financially, the Women’s Basketball team at Lake Forest took home $138,128 in revenue. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Read full sports report on Lake Forest College

25
Eureka College crest
Eureka College
Eureka, Illinois

Eureka College ranked #25 on this year’s Best Colleges for Women’s Basketball in Illinois list. Located in Eureka, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 143 bachelor’s degrees in . On the financial side of things, the Women’s Basketball team at Eureka College made $99,942 in revenue. Full Eureka College Sports Report

Best Colleges for Women's Basketball in the Great Lakes Region

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Notes and References

Footnotes

*Avg Tuition and Fees and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top 25 schools only.

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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