by our College Data Analytics Team
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Best Value IT Schools in Illinois” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Information Technology is the 42nd most popular major in the country with 40,555 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, information technology graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $46,525 and had an average of $26,794 in loans still to pay off.
Across Illinois, there were 1,117 information technology graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,364 and $30,711 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value IT Schools in Illinois” ranking, we looked at 11 colleges that offer a degree in information technology. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent information technology programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the information technology program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
The it school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value IT Schools in Illinois”.
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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value IT Schools in Illinois.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southwestern Illinois College. It ranked #1 on our 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois list. This medium-sized school is located in Belleville, Illinois, and it awarded 43 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
SWIC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Southwestern Illinois College is $6,995 for Illinois IT students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois State University. It ranked #2 on our 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois list. This large school is located in Normal, Illinois, and it awarded 69 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
Illinois State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $20,830 for Illinois IT students per year to attend Illinois State.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Illinois State University Information Technology Report
Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value IT Schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, DePaul University landed the #3 spot on the list. This large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 112 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
DePaul also made our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $31,174 for illinois it students per year to attend DePaul University.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value IT Schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Springfield landed the #4 spot on the list. UIS is located in Springfield, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 19 ’s it degrees to qualified students.
UIS also took the #8 spot in our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $12,034 for Illinois IT students per year to attend University of Illinois at Springfield.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Illinois at Springfield Information Technology Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern Illinois University. It ranked #5 on our 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois list. EIU is a medium-sized public school situated in Charleston, Illinois. It awarded 13 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our illinois it students list, EIU has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $13,098 for Illinois IT students per year to attend Eastern Illinois University.
Western Illinois University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value IT Schools in Illinois ranking. Western Illinois University is a public institution located in Macomb, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 5 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
WIU also took the #9 spot in our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $15,305 for Illinois IT students per year to attend Western Illinois University.
Lewis University landed the #7 spot on the 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois ranking. Lewis is a medium-sized school located in Romeoville, Illinois that handed out 27 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
Lewis did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $19,074 for Illinois IT students per year to attend Lewis University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.0% 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 full report on Information Technology at Lewis University
Illinois Institute of Technology landed the #8 spot on the 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois ranking. Illinois Institute of Technology is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 29 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
Illinois Tech also made our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $23,772 for Illinois IT students per year to attend Illinois Tech.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Information Technology at Illinois Institute of Technology
Bradley University landed the #9 spot on the 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois ranking. Bradley University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Peoria, Illinois. It awarded 9 ’s it degrees in 2020-2021.
Bradley also took the #7 spot in our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $25,196 for Illinois IT students per year to attend Bradley University.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #10, Roosevelt University did quite well on the 2024 Best Value IT Schools in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s it degrees to 6 students in 2020-2021.
Roosevelt did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Roosevelt is $21,678 for illinois it students.
Read full report on Information Technology at Roosevelt University
Loyola University Chicago ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value IT Schools in Illinois list. Loyola Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 17 ’s it degrees to qualified students.
Loyola Chicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Information Technology Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Loyola University Chicago is $36,434 for Illinois IT students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Information Technology at Loyola University Chicago
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
