by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 32,731 people earned their degree in history, making the major the 23rd most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, history graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $30,467 and had an average of $23,587 in loans still to pay off.
Across Illinois, there were 974 history graduates with average earnings and debt of $32,707 and $22,415 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois” ranking, we looked at 45 colleges that offer a degree in history. That schools that top this list have a program in history in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois history students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Blackburn College. The school came in at #1 for the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois. Located in Carlinville, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 5 degrees to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Knox College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Located in Galesburg, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 13 diplomas to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
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%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Springfield. The school came in at #3 for the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois. This small school is located in Springfield, Illinois, and it awarded 29 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Monmouth College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Monmouth is a small school located in Monmouth, Illinois that handed out 6 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%.
Out of the 45 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois College landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Jacksonville, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 7 degrees to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
Wheaton College Illinois ranked #6 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. This small school is located in Wheaton, Illinois, and it awarded 20 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Illinois Wesleyan University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Illinois Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bloomington, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Illinois State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Normal, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s history degrees to 107 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #9, Eastern Illinois University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Located in Charleston, Illinois, this medium-sized public school handed out 32 diplomas to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
Augustana College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Augustana is a private not-for-profit institution located in Rock Island, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 15 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Northeastern Illinois University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 30 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
Greenville University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #12. Located in Greenville, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 5 degrees to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.9% 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%.
Lake Forest College ranked #13 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Located in Lake Forest, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 7 diplomas to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Chicago came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s history degrees to 103 students in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.0% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%.
With a ranking of #15, Quincy University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. This small school is located in Quincy, Illinois, and it awarded 4 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
Trinity Christian College ranked #16 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Palos Heights, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s history degrees to 5 students in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Chicago State University ranked #17 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s history degrees to 7 students in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
With a ranking of #18, Western Illinois University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Macomb, Illinois. It awarded 25 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
Northern Illinois University ranked #19 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. Located in Dekalb, Illinois, this fairly large public school awarded 51 degrees to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
North Park University landed the #20 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. North Park University is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 8 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
North Central College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #21. North Central is a private not-for-profit institution located in Naperville, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a public institution located in Edwardsville, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 30 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Northwestern University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Northwestern is a private not-for-profit institution located in Evanston, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 82 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. 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. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of St Francis ranked #24 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois list. University of St Francis is a small school located in Joliet, Illinois that handed out 9 ’s history degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Loyola University Chicago came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on History Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 44 degrees to qualified ’s history students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
