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2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois

6 Ranked Colleges
55 Degrees Awarded
$35,643 Avg Salary
Schools for a Master's Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2020-2021, 6,966 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 115th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $33,127 and had an average of $20,927 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 148 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $32,250 and $19,500 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 55 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $59,317 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois” ranking looked at 6 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in area studies. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their area studies program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.

See our ranking methodology to learn more.

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The area studies school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois”.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois

The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois”.

Top 6 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies in Illinois

1
UChicago crest
University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois. This fairly large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 30 masters’s area studies degrees in 2020-2021.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 100%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full UChicago Area Studies Report

2

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northeastern Illinois University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois. Northeastern Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 5 masters’s area studies degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Area Studies at Northeastern Illinois University

3

Out of the 6 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Champaign, Illinois, this large public school handed out 14 diplomas to qualified masters’s area studies students in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

4

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 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this large public school awarded 6 degrees to qualified masters’s area studies students in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Area Studies at University of Illinois at Chicago

5
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois

Out of the 6 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, DePaul University landed the #5 spot on the list. DePaul is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 11 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Area Studies at DePaul University

5
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Area Studies Major in Illinois list. Northwestern is a private not-for-profit institution located in Evanston, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 17 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Since the school has a undergrad 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 undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Northwestern University Area Studies Report

Notes and References

References

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