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2024 Best General Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region

83 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
11,380 General Studies Degrees Awarded
If you pursue a degree in general studies, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #5 most popular program in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 83 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for general studies students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 11,380 degrees in general studies to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great General Studies School

Best General Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region Your choice of general studies school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall General Studies School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

General Studies Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in General Studies
Bachelor's Degrees in General Studies
Master's Degrees in General Studies

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 General Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.


 

Best Schools for General Studies in the Great Lakes Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the general studies degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

12 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in General Studies

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
36th Most Popular In IL

It is difficult to beat University of Chicago if you wish to pursue a degree in general studies. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UChicago is a great university overall.

There were roughly 12 general studies students who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general studies from University of Chicago

2
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In IL
93 General Studies Degrees Awarded

DePaul University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in general studies. DePaul is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #203 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means DePaul is a great university overall.

There were roughly 93 general studies students who graduated with this degree at DePaul in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general studies from DePaul University

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
18th Most Popular In MI
65 General Studies Degrees Awarded

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in general studies. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.

There were about 65 general studies students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general studies from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

4
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
27th Most Popular In IL

College of Lake County is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in general studies. Located in the large suburb of Grayslake, College of Lake County is a public college with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #247 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means College of Lake County is a great college overall.

There were roughly 29 general studies students who graduated with this degree at College of Lake County in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from College of Lake County

5
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MI
1,053 General Studies Degrees Awarded

Macomb Community College is a large public college located in the city of Warren. A Best Colleges rank of #377 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Macomb Community College is a great college overall.

There were roughly 1053 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Macomb Community College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from Macomb Community College

6
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
11th Most Popular In IL
99 General Studies Degrees Awarded

Located in the large suburb of Palatine, Harper College is a public college with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #512 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Harper College is a great college overall.

There were roughly 99 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Harper College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from William Rainey Harper College

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
22nd Most Popular In MI
7.1% Growth in Graduates

Located in the town of Adrian, Siena Heights University is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 21st out of 57 colleges for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were roughly 28 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Siena Heights University in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from Siena Heights University

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IN
138 General Studies Degrees Awarded

IWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the rural area of Marion. A Best Colleges rank of #291 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means IWU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 138 general studies students who graduated with this degree at IWU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global

9
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In IL
151 General Studies Degrees Awarded

Harold Washington College is a moderately-sized public college located in the city of Chicago. This college ranks 34th out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were about 151 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Harold Washington College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general studies from City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In IL
111 General Studies Degrees Awarded

Illinois State is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Normal. A Best Colleges rank of #231 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Illinois State is a great university overall.

There were about 111 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Illinois State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from Illinois State University

11
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
16th Most Popular In IL
56 General Studies Degrees Awarded

Waubonsee is a moderately-sized public college located in the rural area of Sugar Grove. This college ranks 45th out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were roughly 56 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Waubonsee in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general studies from Waubonsee Community College

12
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
26th Most Popular In IL

Olive-Harvey College is a small public college located in the large city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #679 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Olive-Harvey College is a great college overall.

There were approximately 30 general studies students who graduated with this degree at Olive-Harvey College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general studies from City Colleges of Chicago - Olive-Harvey College


 

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for General Studies students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Best General Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
13 Oakland Community College Auburn Hills, MI
14 Indiana Wesleyan University Marion, IN
15 McHenry County College Crystal Lake, IL
16 Ferris State University Big Rapids, MI
17 Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH
18 College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, IL
19 City Colleges of Chicago - Wilbur Wright College Chicago, IL
20 Oakton Community College Des Plaines, IL

Best General Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best general studies colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Ohio 939 1,994
Michigan 915 4,524
Illinois 870 2,922
Indiana 737 238
Wisconsin 672 50

View All Rankings >

General Studies is one of 3 different types of Liberal Arts General Studies programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Liberal Arts 37,033
Individualized Studies 11,231
Humanities 1,097

View All General Studies Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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