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2024 Best Public Relations & Advertising Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

46 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
3,109 Bachelor's Degrees
$37,503 Avg Early-Career Salary
Public Relations & Advertising is of the hottest bachelor's degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #32 most popular major in the country. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 46 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of public relations & advertising. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,109 bachelor's degrees in public relations & advertising during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Public Relations & Advertising School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Public Relations & Advertising Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region Your choice of public relations & advertising for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:

Overall Quality Is a Must

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Early-Career Salaries

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their bachelor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your bachelor's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for public relations & advertising students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Public Relations Rankings Other Ranking Categories

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 Public Relations & Advertising Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Public Relations & Advertising in the Great Lakes Region

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in public relations & advertising.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Public Relations

1
222 Annual Graduates
$42,675 Median Starting Salary
$23,250 Median Student Debt

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a good decision for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in public relations & advertising. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a very large student population.

Those public relations & advertising students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign receive $5,172 more than the average public relations graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

2
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
565 Annual Graduates
$38,973 Median Starting Salary
$23,899 Median Student Debt

It's hard to beat Michigan State University if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in public relations & advertising. Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the public relations program state that they receive average early career income of $38,973.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Michigan State University

3
146 Annual Graduates
$44,717 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

Miami University - Oxford is a great option for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in public relations & advertising. Miami University - Oxford is a large public university located in the fringe town of Oxford.

Bachelor's recipients from the public relations & advertising major at Miami University - Oxford make $7,214 above the average college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Miami University - Oxford

4
Marquette crest
Marquette University
Milwaukee, WI
103 Annual Graduates
$39,449 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

Marquette University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in public relations & advertising. Located in the city of Milwaukee, Marquette is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the public relations program make an average of $39,449 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Marquette University

5
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
189 Annual Graduates
$38,478 Median Starting Salary
$24,500 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the public relations program report average early career income of $38,478.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from DePaul University

6
127 Annual Graduates
$40,389 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Public Relations & Advertising bachelor's degree recipients from Loyola University Chicago receive an earnings boost of approximately $2,886 above the typical income of public relations & advertising graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Loyola University Chicago

7
69 Annual Graduates
$36,966 Median Starting Salary
$26,819 Median Student Debt

Located in the medium-sized city of Peoria, Bradley is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.

Soon after graduating, public relations bachelor's recipients generally make about $36,966 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Bradley University

8
92 Annual Graduates
$36,791 Median Starting Salary
$23,879 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Muncie, Ball State is a public university with a large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the public relations program state that they receive average early career wages of $36,791.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Ball State University

9
Ashland crest
Ashland University
Ashland, OH
9 Annual Graduates
$35,509 Median Starting Salary
$27,125 Median Student Debt

Ashland is a small private not-for-profit university located in the fringe town of Ashland.

Soon after graduation, public relations bachelor's recipients typically make about $35,509 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Ashland University

10
74 Annual Graduates
$35,894 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the small city of Kalamazoo, WMU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Soon after graduating, public relations bachelor's recipients generally earn around $35,894 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in public relations & advertising from Western Michigan University

Best Public Relations & Advertising Colleges by State

Explore the best public relations & advertising colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 261 1,167
Ohio 252 576
Illinois 241 811
Indiana 235 287
Wisconsin 213 268

View All Rankings >

Public Relations & Advertising is one of 5 different types of Communication & Journalism programs to choose from.

Public Relations Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Advertising 1,092
Public Relations 762
Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication 429
Other Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication 339
General Organizational Communication 249
Health Communication 82
Sports Communication 81
Communication Management and Strategic Communications 56
Technical & Scientific Communication 11
International & Intercultural Communication 8

Related Major Annual Graduates
Communication & Media Studies 7,910
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 1,815
Journalism 1,496
Communication & Journalism (Other) 121
Publishing 2

Notes and References

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