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2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region

11 Ranked Colleges
644 Degrees Awarded
$19,200 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor's in the Great Lakes Region

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

In 2019-2020, 5,051 people earned their degree in general architecture, making the major the 111th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, general architecture graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $46,998 and had an average of $41,356 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 845 general architecture graduates with average earnings and debt of $46,071 and $36,815 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 644 general architecture graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,075 and $25,381 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, we looked at 11 colleges that offer a degree in general architecture. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent general architecture programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the general architecture program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank General Architecture Schools

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” list to help you make the college decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students.

Top 11 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for General Architecture in the Great Lakes Region

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a fairly large school located in Carbondale, Illinois that handed out 36 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC also made our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #10. The yearly cost to attend SIUC is $16,945 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students.

Read full report on General Architecture at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee is a large public school situated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It awarded 95 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students list, UWM has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UWM is $17,876 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students.

Read full report on General Architecture at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Kent State University at Kent. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. Kent State is a public institution located in Kent, Ohio. The school has a large population, and it awarded 89 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Kent State, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $18,885 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students per year to attend Kent State University at Kent.

Read more about General Architecture at Kent State University at Kent

#4

Ball State University

Muncie, Indiana

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Ball State University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Ball State is a large school located in Muncie, Indiana that handed out 51 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

Ball State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Ball State is $15,147 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students.

Full Ball State University General Architecture Report

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Cincinnati - Main Campus landed the #5 spot on the list. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is a public institution located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The school has a large population, and it awarded 82 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UC also made our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #7. The estimated yearly cost for University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is $21,843 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students.

With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about General Architecture at UC

University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s architecture degrees to 69 students in 2019-2020.

UIC also took the #3 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Chicago is $13,312 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Illinois at Chicago General Architecture Report

#7

Judson University

Elgin, Illinois

With a ranking of #7, Judson University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Judson University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Elgin, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 26 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Judson did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $18,737 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students per year to attend Judson University.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on General Architecture at Judson

Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #8. This large school is located in Columbus, Ohio, and it awarded 87 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

Ohio State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $17,616 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students per year to attend Ohio State University - Main Campus.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 4.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about General Architecture at Ohio State

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. U-M is a large school located in Ann Arbor, Michigan that handed out 70 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

U-M also took the #2 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $15,336 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Architecture students per year to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read full report on General Architecture at U-M

Illinois Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #10. Illinois Institute of Technology is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 3 bachelors’s architecture degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois Tech also took the #4 spot in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $22,831 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students per year to attend Illinois Tech.

The low student loan default rate of 2.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. 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 more about General Architecture at Illinois Tech

#11

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, Indiana

With a ranking of #11, University of Notre Dame did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Architecture Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit institution located in Notre Dame, Indiana. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 36 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students list, Notre Dame has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best General Architecture Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $33,025 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree architecture students per year to attend Notre Dame.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low student loan default rate of 0.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full Notre Dame General Architecture Report

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Notes and References

References

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Danichou.

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