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2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k

6 Ranked Colleges
139 Degrees Awarded
$21,700 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Area Studies is the 106th most popular major in the country with 6,820 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,734 and had an average of $23,024 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 139 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,433 and $25,759 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking analyzed 6 colleges that offered a degree in area studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great area studies 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 area studies program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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 Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k.

Top 6 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $75-$110k) 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 Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k. Evanston, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s area studies degrees to 13 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois area studies students whose families make $75-$110k list, Northwestern has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $16,784 for Illinois Area Studies students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend Northwestern University.

The student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Northwestern University Area Studies Report

#2

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k list. University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 39 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UChicago also took the #1 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UChicago is $17,929 for illinois area studies students whose families make $75-$110k.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%.

Read more about Area Studies at University of Chicago

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 33 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Area Studies Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for UIUC is $21,998 for illinois area studies students whose families make $75-$110k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Area Studies Report

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 Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k. University of Illinois at Chicago is a public institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 23 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois area studies students whose families make $75-$110k list, UIC has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Illinois at Chicago is $20,270 for Illinois Area Studies students whose families make $75-$110k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Illinois at Chicago Area Studies Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northeastern Illinois University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k list. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 1 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

Northeastern Illinois University also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #6. The yearly cost to attend Northeastern Illinois University is $22,526 for illinois area studies students whose families make $75-$110k.

Full Northeastern Illinois University Area Studies Report

#6

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Area Studies Schools in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k list. DePaul University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 11 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois area studies students whose families make $75-$110k list, DePaul has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $30,877 for Illinois Area Studies students whose families make $75-$110k per year to attend DePaul.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full DePaul University Area Studies Report

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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