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2022 Best Value Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in Illinois

11 Ranked Colleges
6,518 Degrees Awarded
$13,300 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking.

Engineering is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 6th of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 200,458 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2017-2018, engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $64,888 and had an average of $23,564 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 6,518 engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $65,008 and $25,246 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in engineering. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality engineering programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the engineering program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in Illinois

#1

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northwestern University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k. Northwestern University is a large school located in Evanston, Illinois that handed out 804 ’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern also took the #1 spot in our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern University is $3,995 for illinois engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

The low student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Northwestern Engineering Report

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #2 spot on the list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is located in Champaign, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2,577 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

UIUC also made our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #2. It costs about $8,464 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.

Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Engineering Report

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the #3 spot on the list. SIUE is a public institution located in Edwardsville, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 261 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUE also took the #9 spot in our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is $9,938 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Engineering at SIUE

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Chicago. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k list. University of Illinois at Chicago is a public institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 915 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIC also took the #7 spot in our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $11,185 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of Illinois at Chicago.

The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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%.

Read more about Engineering at University of Illinois at Chicago

#5

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northern Illinois University landed the #5 spot on the list. NIU is a public institution located in Dekalb, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 328 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois engineering students whose families make $30-$48k list, NIU has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $15,861 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend NIU.

Read full report on Engineering at NIU

Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. SIUC is located in Carbondale, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 198 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

SIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $14,306 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Read full report on Engineering at SIUC

#7

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois

Western Illinois University landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Macomb, Illinois, and it awarded 24 ’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

WIU also made our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #11. The yearly cost to attend WIU is $14,526 for illinois engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Engineering at WIU

#8

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, Illinois

With a ranking of #8, Olivet Nazarene University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k list. Bourbonnais, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 79 students in 2019-2020.

Olivet Nazarene not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $15,390 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Olivet Nazarene University.

The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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%.

Read more about Engineering at Olivet Nazarene

#9

Bradley University

Peoria, Illinois

Bradley University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Peoria, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 193 students in 2019-2020.

Bradley not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $18,232 for illinois engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Bradley University.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. 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%.

Read more about Engineering at Bradley University

#10

Wheaton College Illinois

Wheaton, Illinois

Wheaton College Illinois did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #10. Wheaton College Illinois is located in Wheaton, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 7 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

Wheaton College Illinois not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Wheaton College Illinois is $16,212 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

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. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 0.7% 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 Engineering at Wheaton College Illinois

Illinois Institute of Technology landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Illinois Tech is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 662 ’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois Tech not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Engineering Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $18,720 for Illinois Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Illinois Tech.

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. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, 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.

Full Illinois Institute of Technology Engineering Report

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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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