by our College Data Analytics TeamCommunication & Media Studies is a major offered under the communication and journalism program of study at Illinois State University. We’ve gathered data and other essential information about the bachelor’s degree program in communications, such as diversity of students, how many students graduated in recent times, and more.
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Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
With an online bachelor's degree in communication you'll have the opportunity to pursue a multitude of career options. From journalism and social media, to public relations, advertising and mass media, earning your BA in communication will allow you to strategize and communicate your ideas.
In order to help students and their parents find the best school for them, we have created several different types of college rankings, which are updated yearly. Illinois State was ranked #99 on College Factual's most recent list of the best schools for communications majors. This puts the bachelor's program at the school solidly in the top 15% of all colleges and universities in the country. It is also ranked #6 in Illinois.
Here are some of the other rankings for Illinois State.
Out-of-state part-time undergraduates at Illinois State paid an average of $768 per credit hour in 2019-2020. The average for in-state students was $384 per credit hour. The following table shows the average full-time tuition and fees for undergraduates.
| In State | Out of State | |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $10,741 | $19,904 |
| Fees | $2,374 | $2,374 |
| Books and Supplies | $820 | $820 |
| On Campus Room and Board | $9,850 | $9,850 |
| On Campus Other Expenses | $5,764 | $5,764 |
Learn more about Illinois State tuition and fees.
One factor in determining the overall cost in a degree is to consider how much in student loans you’ll have to take out. Communications students who received their bachelor’s degree at Illinois State took out an average of $21,250 in student loans. That is 13% lower than the national average of $24,445.
The median early career salary of communications students who receive their bachelor’s degree from Illinois State is $39,885 per year. That is 26% higher than the national average of $31,626.
Online degrees for the Illinois State communications bachelor’s degree program are not available at this time. To see if the school offers distance learning options in other areas, visit the Illinois State Online Learning page.
Of the students who received their bachelor’s degree in communications in 2019-2020, 57.0% of them were women. This is less than the nationwide number of 64.0%.
Of those graduates who received a bachelor’s degree in communications at Illinois State in 2019-2020, 23.3% were racial-ethnic minorities*. This is lower than the nationwide number of 36%.
| Race/Ethnicity | Number of Students |
|---|---|
| Asian | 2 |
| Black or African American | 18 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 15 |
| Native American or Alaska Native | 0 |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 0 |
| White | 130 |
| International Students | 1 |
| Other Races/Ethnicities | 6 |
Communication & Media Studies students may decide to major in one of the following focus areas.
| Focus Area | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Speech Communication | 105 |
| Communication & Media Studies | 67 |
You may also be interested in one of these majors related to communication and media studies.
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Journalism | 33 |
| Public Relations & Advertising | 80 |
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
