2026 Best Value Other Engineering Schools in Illinois
[Other Engineering](/majors/engineering/other-engineering/) programs reward a close look at where your money goes furthest. The best values balance affordable tuition against strong post-graduation earnings.
To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 5 schools on the balance of cost and outcomes for other engineering students.
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2026 Best Value Other Engineering Schools in Illinois
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in other engineering, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value Other Engineering Schools
Leading the list is Illinois Institute Of Technology, our #1 best value for other engineering in Illinois. 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. Other Engineering graduates carry a median of $26,774 in student loans. Other Engineering graduates of Illinois Institute Of Technology earn a median of $71,315 early in their careers. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. Roughly 55% of applicants are accepted.
Students looking for strong value in other engineering will find it at Wheaton College Illinois, which ranked #2. Set in the suburb of Wheaton, Wheaton College Illinois is a mid-sized private not-for-profit institution. Students from in state pay about $45,546 in tuition and fees. Typical student debt for other engineering graduates is $23,292. Soon after graduation, other engineering degree recipients from Wheaton College Illinois generally make around $43,654. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. The acceptance rate is 87%.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at Northwestern University earned it the #3 place for other engineering. Northwestern University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston. Students from in state pay about $68,322 in tuition and fees. Other Engineering graduates carry a median of $16,616 in student loans. Early-career other engineering graduates make about $162,147. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. The acceptance rate is 8%.
More Other Engineering Rankings
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs the cost of a degree against the earnings graduates go on to achieve, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 5 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 3 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.
