Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Legal Professions

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Colleges for Legal Professions in Illinois (With Aid)

15 Ranked Colleges
2,962 Degrees Awarded
$17,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 61,993 people earned their degree in legal professions, making the major the 17th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, legal professions graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $43,199 and had an average of $58,026 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 2,962 legal professions graduates with average earnings and debt of $63,390 and $76,092 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 15 colleges that offer a degree in legal professions. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent legal professions programs, but they also 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 legal professions program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois legal professions students with aid.

#1

College of Lake County

Grayslake, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend College of Lake County. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. College of Lake County is a fairly large school located in Grayslake, Illinois that handed out 26 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

College of Lake County also took the #8 spot in our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend College of Lake County is $4,735 for illinois legal professions students with aid.

Full College of Lake County Legal Professions Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Lewis and Clark Community College. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. Lewis and Clark Community College is a small public school situated in Godfrey, Illinois. It awarded 26 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

Lewis and Clark Community College also made our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #9. It costs about $5,464 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid per year to attend Lewis and Clark Community College.

Read more about Legal Professions at Lewis and Clark Community College

#3

Elgin Community College

Elgin, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Elgin Community College. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. Elgin Community College is a public institution located in Elgin, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 13 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at ECC, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $4,185 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid per year to attend ECC.

Read more about Legal Professions at Elgin Community College

#4

Southwestern Illinois College

Belleville, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southwestern Illinois College. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. Southwestern Illinois College is located in Belleville, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 21 ’s legal professions degrees to qualified students.

SWIC also took the #12 spot in our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SWIC is $7,098 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid.

Read more about Legal Professions at Southwestern Illinois College

Out of the 15 schools in the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Springfield landed the #5 spot on the list. Springfield, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s legal professions degrees to 16 students in 2019-2020.

UIS also made our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #11. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Springfield is $12,477 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid.

Read full report on Legal Professions at University of Illinois at Springfield

#6

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois

Northwestern University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Northwestern is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 685 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern also made our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern University is $24,664 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national 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.

Full Northwestern Legal Professions Report

#7

MacCormac College

Chicago, Illinois
#5 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, MacCormac College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. MacCormac College is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 33 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

MacCormac also made our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #5. The estimated yearly cost for MacCormac is $18,211 for illinois legal professions students with aid.

Read more about Legal Professions at MacCormac College

#8

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois

Northern Illinois University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in Dekalb, Illinois, and it awarded 80 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

NIU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #13 on our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $18,259 for illinois legal professions students with aid per year to attend NIU.

Read full report on Legal Professions at NIU

With a ranking of #9, Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 112 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #14 on our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $16,945 for illinois legal professions students with aid per year to attend SIUC.

Read full report on Legal Professions at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

#10

Rasmussen University - Illinois

Rockford, Illinois

Rasmussen University - Illinois came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Rasmussen University - Illinois is a small private for-profit school situated in Rockford, Illinois. It awarded 10 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

Rasmussen University - Illinois not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Rasmussen University - Illinois is $18,744 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid.

Read more about Legal Professions at Rasmussen University - Illinois

#11

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

With a ranking of #11, University of Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 290 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois legal professions students with aid list, UChicago has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UChicago is $27,315 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 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 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Read full report on Legal Professions at University of Chicago

#12

Roosevelt University

Chicago, Illinois

Roosevelt University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Roosevelt University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 33 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Roosevelt did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Roosevelt is $22,749 for illinois legal professions students with aid.

Full Roosevelt Legal Professions Report

Illinois Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #13. Illinois Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 332 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois Tech also took the #4 spot in our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Illinois Tech is $22,831 for illinois legal professions students with aid.

With a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national 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.

Read full report on Legal Professions at Illinois Tech

#14

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #14. This large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 282 ’s legal professions degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at DePaul, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $30,090 for Illinois Legal Professions students with aid per year to attend DePaul.

The low student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%.

Full DePaul Legal Professions Report

#15

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

With a ranking of #15, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Legal Professions Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 595 degrees to qualified ’s legal professions students in 2019-2020.

Loyola Chicago did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Legal Professions Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $35,407 for illinois legal professions students with aid per year to attend Loyola University Chicago.

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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Legal Professions at Loyola University Chicago

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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to The wub.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You