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2022 Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts in Illinois

39 Colleges in Illinois

699 Bachelor's Degrees

If you pursue a bachelor's degree in liberal arts, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #21 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 39 schools in Illinois to determine which ones were the most popular for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of liberal arts. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 699 bachelor's degrees in liberal arts during the 2019-2020 academic year.

What's on this page: * Other Rankings

Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Liberal Arts School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Your choice of school for getting your bachelor's degree in liberal studies matters. One of the reasons we created our Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts in Illinois ranking is to help you make that choice.

While being high in popularity does not always mean a school has a quality liberal arts program, it is a sign that a large number of students choose the school. This may be due to it being a great value, it offering a stellar educational experience, or the subject is a major focus of the school.

More Ways to Rank Liberal Arts Schools

Associate Degrees in Liberal Studies

Master's Degrees in Liberal Studies

Overall Popularity in Liberal Studies

We have also developed a number of other rankings to help guide you in your decision-making process. To begin with, if this is not the degree level you are most interested in, you may want to check out one of the others noted above. If you would prefer to limit your search to a specific state or region of the county, see our rankings by location. Plus, you can view our other rankings for liberal arts.

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. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Featured Liberal Arts Programs

Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.

BA in General Studies

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Most Popular Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Liberal Arts in Illinois

Learn about the most popular colleges and universities for liberal arts students seeking a a bachelor's degree.

10 Most Well Attended Schools for Liberal Studies Students Working on Their Bachelor's

Northeastern Illinois University
Chicago, IL

139 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#10 Best Quality In IL

Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in liberal arts has to check out Northeastern Illinois University. Located in the large city of Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University is a public university with a moderately-sized student population.

There were about 139 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at Northeastern Illinois University in the most recent data year.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Northeastern Illinois University

Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, IL

123 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#4 Best Quality In IL

Eastern Illinois University is a popular choice for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in liberal arts. Located in the town of Charleston, EIU is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. You also may be intersted to know that the school ranks #4 in quality for bachelor's degrees in liberal arts in Illinois.

There were about 123 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at EIU in the most recent data year.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Eastern Illinois University

Governors State University
University Park, IL

108 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#8 Best Quality In IL

Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in liberal arts needs to check out Governors State University. Located in the rural area of University Park, GSU is a public university with a small student population. You also may be intersted to know that the school ranks #8 in quality for bachelor's degrees in liberal arts in Illinois.

There were about 108 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at GSU in the most recent data year.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Governors State University

Northern Illinois University
Dekalb, IL

61 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#5 Best Quality In IL

Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in liberal arts has to take a look at Northern Illinois University. Located in the small suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public university with a large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #5 in quality for bachelor's degrees in liberal arts in Illinois.

There were approximately 61 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at NIU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Northern Illinois University

Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Carbondale, IL

54 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#11 Best Quality In IL

SIUC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Carbondale.

There were roughly 54 liberal arts individuals who graduated with this degree at SIUC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Illinois State University
Normal, IL

44 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#2 Best Quality In IL

Illinois State is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized suburb of Normal. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #2 in quality for bachelor's degrees in liberal arts in Illinois.

There were approximately 44 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at Illinois State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Illinois State University

Saint Xavier University
Chicago, IL

24 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#12 Best Quality In IL

Located in the city of Chicago, SXU is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.

There were approximately 24 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at SXU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Saint Xavier University

Chicago State University
Chicago, IL

21 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#14 Best Quality In IL

Located in the city of Chicago, CSU is a public university with a small student population.

There were about 21 liberal arts individuals who graduated with this degree at CSU in the most recent data year.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from Chicago State University

University of Illinois at Springfield
Springfield, IL

15 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#7 Best Quality In IL

UIS is a small public university located in the medium-sized city of Springfield. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #7 in quality for bachelor's degrees in liberal arts in Illinois.

There were roughly 15 liberal arts students who graduated with this degree at UIS in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from University of Illinois at Springfield

University of Chicago
Chicago, IL

12 Annual Bachelor's Degrees

#1 Best Quality In IL

UChicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for bachelor's degrees in liberal arts in Illinois.

There were roughly 12 liberal arts individuals who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a bachelor’s in liberal arts from University of Chicago

Best Liberal Arts Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Most Popular Liberal Arts Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Michigan	615	134
Ohio	598	356
Indiana	532	619
Wisconsin	421	258

Other Rankings

Most Popular Overall
in Liberal Arts

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One of 3 majors within the Liberal Arts General Studies area of study, Liberal Arts has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major	Annual Graduates
General Studies	285
Individualized Studies	161
Humanities	13

Notes and References

The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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 the rest 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). More about our data sources and methodologies.

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2022 Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Liberal Arts in Illinois

Choosing a Great Liberal Arts School for Your Bachelor's Degree