2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois” ranking.
In 2019-2020, 310,601 education students received their degree, making the major the 4th most popular in the country. In 2017-2018, education graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $43,887 and had an average of $30,244 in loans still to pay off.
Across Illinois, there were 10,069 education graduates with average earnings and debt of $45,178 and $28,378 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 3,458 education graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,319 and $24,183 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois” ranking, we looked at 47 colleges that offer a degree in education. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great education programs and 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 education program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois
The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
Top 26 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Education in Illinois
Out of the 47 schools in the Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois State University landed the #1 spot on the list. Illinois State University is a large school located in Normal, Illinois that handed out 735 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
Illinois State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $20,895 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students per year to attend Illinois State.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 47 schools in the Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #2 spot on the list. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 253 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
SIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $16,945 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students per year to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Education Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large school located in Champaign, Illinois that handed out 190 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
UIUC also made our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $15,880 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Education at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 116 students in 2019-2020.
UIC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for UIC is $13,312 for illinois bachelor’s degree education 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%.
Read full report on Education at University of Illinois at Chicago
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern Illinois University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Charleston, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 121 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree education students list, EIU has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Eastern Illinois University is $14,607 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is located in Edwardsville, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 103 bachelors’s education degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $14,423 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students per year to attend SIUE.
Full Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Education Report
With a ranking of #7, Northern Illinois University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Northern Illinois University is a public institution located in Dekalb, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 166 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
NIU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #18 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for NIU is $18,259 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
Western Illinois University landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking. Western Illinois University is a public institution located in Macomb, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 74 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $16,210 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students per year to attend Western Illinois University.
With a ranking of #9, Northeastern Illinois University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 71 students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Northeastern Illinois University is $15,843 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students.
Read full report on Education at Northeastern Illinois University
Governors State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking, coming in at #10. GSU is a public institution located in University Park, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 40 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Governors State University is $12,077 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
University of Illinois at Springfield did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking, coming in at #11. This small school is located in Springfield, Illinois, and it awarded 14 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Springfield is $12,477 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
National Louis University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking, coming in at #12. National Louis University is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 162 bachelors’s education degrees to qualified students.
NLU also made our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #25. The yearly cost to attend National Louis University is $14,957 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
VanderCook College of Music ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. VanderCook College of Music is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 19 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
VanderCook College of Music also took the #3 spot in our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $19,160 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students per year to attend VanderCook College of Music.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Education at VanderCook College of Music
Chicago State University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 26 students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Chicago State University is $11,733 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students.
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.
Aurora University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Aurora is located in Aurora, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 63 bachelors’s education degrees to qualified students.
Aurora also took the #19 spot in our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $17,215 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students per year to attend Aurora University.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Greenville University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Greenville, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 42 students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Greenville University is $20,689 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
With a ranking of #17, North Park University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. This small school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 27 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
North Park not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #22 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $19,170 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students per year to attend North Park.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
With a ranking of #18, Trinity Christian College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Trinity Christian is a small school located in Palos Heights, Illinois that handed out 74 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
Trinity Christian not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #24 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Trinity Christian is $21,904 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Lewis University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Romeoville, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 89 students in 2019-2020.
Lewis not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Lewis University is $18,664 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Judson University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking. This small school is located in Elgin, Illinois, and it awarded 12 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $18,737 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students per year to attend Judson University.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Eureka College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking, coming in at #21. Eureka College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Eureka, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 20 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Eureka College is $21,344 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students.
Bradley University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking, coming in at #22. Bradley University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Peoria, Illinois. It awarded 81 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
Bradley also made our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #14. The yearly cost to attend Bradley is $25,634 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of St Francis ranked #23 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Located in Joliet, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 15 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s education students in 2019-2020.
University of Saint Francis also made our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #20. The yearly cost to attend University of Saint Francis is $17,538 for illinois bachelor’s degree education students.
The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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%.
Wheaton College Illinois came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking. Wheaton College Illinois is a small school located in Wheaton, Illinois that handed out 47 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
Wheaton College Illinois also took the #6 spot in our “Best Education Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Wheaton College Illinois is $25,358 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. 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 student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
McKendree University landed the #25 spot on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois ranking. Lebanon, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s education degrees to 28 students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $19,844 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students per year to attend McKendree.
With a ranking of #25, Concordia University, Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Education Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in River Forest, Illinois. It awarded 54 bachelors’s education degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $16,512 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Education students per year to attend Concordia University, Chicago.
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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.
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