2026 Best Value Industrial & Management Engineering Schools in Illinois
[Industrial & Management Engineering](/majors/engineering-technologies/engineering-related-fields/industrial-management-engineering/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. A high-value program keeps cost low while graduates go on to earn well.
College Factual analyzed 6 schools to build this 2026 ranking of the best value industrial & management engineering schools.
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2026 Best Value Industrial & Management Engineering Schools in Illinois
If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the industrial & management engineering degrees they offer, see the list below.
Best Value Industrial & Management Engineering Schools
Our analysis ranked Northern Illinois University the best value for a degree in industrial & management engineering in Illinois. Set in the suburb of Dekalb, Northern Illinois University is a large public institution. Students from in state pay about $13,060 in tuition and fees. Typical student debt for industrial & management engineering graduates is $25,209. Early-career industrial & management engineering graduates make about $81,686. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. The acceptance rate is 70%.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign earned it the #2 place for industrial & management engineering. University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign is a very large public school located in the city of Champaign. Students from in state pay about $18,267 in tuition and fees, compared with $40,096 for out-of-state students. Students borrow a median of $20,778 to complete the industrial & management engineering program here. Early-career industrial & management engineering graduates make about $57,461. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. Roughly 42% of applicants are accepted.
A rank of #3 makes Illinois Institute Of Technology one of the best values for industrial & management engineering. Located in the city of Chicago, Illinois Institute Of Technology is a large private not-for-profit university. Students from in state pay about $52,202 in tuition and fees. Students borrow a median of $26,774 to complete the industrial & management engineering program here. Early-career industrial & management engineering graduates make about $72,164. Set against $26,774 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. The acceptance rate is 55%.
A rank of #4 makes Northwestern University one of the best values for industrial & management engineering. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern University is a very large private not-for-profit university. In-state tuition and fees average $68,322. Typical student debt for industrial & management engineering graduates is $16,616. Soon after graduation, industrial & management engineering degree recipients from Northwestern University generally make around $144,879. That is a strong return on a $16,616 median debt. Northwestern University admits about 8% of applicants.
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Notes and References
This list is compiled by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 6 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 2 ranked schools only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
