by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois” ranking is part of that endeavor.
With 556,813 degrees handed out in 2020-2021, liberal arts general studies is the 1st most popular major in the United States. In 2019-2020, liberal arts general studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $28,337 and had an average of $17,430 in loans still to pay off.
Across Illinois, there were 25,747 liberal arts general studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $27,957 and $14,623 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,059 liberal arts general studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,117 and $25,584 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois” ranking, we looked at 44 colleges that offer a degree in liberal arts general studies. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in liberal arts general studies.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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 “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois” list to help you make the college decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois”.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Governors State University. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois. GSU is a small public school situated in University Park, Illinois. It awarded 120 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Out of the 44 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Illinois University landed the #2 spot on the list. WIU is a medium-sized school located in Macomb, Illinois that handed out 167 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Full Western Illinois University Liberal Arts General Studies Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Chicago State University. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois. Chicago State University is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 37 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.
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.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northeastern Illinois University. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois. Northeastern Illinois University is a public institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 110 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Full Northeastern Illinois University Liberal Arts General Studies Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Eastern Illinois University. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois. EIU is located in Charleston, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 100 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.
Lincoln College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. This small school is located in Lincoln, Illinois, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Lincoln College
Lake Forest College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. Lake Forest is a private not-for-profit institution located in Lake Forest, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 14 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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%.
Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Lake Forest College
Illinois State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #8. Illinois State is a large school located in Normal, Illinois that handed out 126 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% 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%.
Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Illinois State
Eureka College did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #9. Eureka, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to 3 students in 2020-2021.
Northern Illinois University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #10. Northern Illinois University is a fairly large school located in Dekalb, Illinois that handed out 88 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Northern Illinois University
With a ranking of #11, Saint Xavier University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois list. Saint Xavier University is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 17 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Full Saint Xavier University Liberal Arts General Studies Report
Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #12. This fairly large school is located in Carbondale, Illinois, and it awarded 58 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
DePaul University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #13. DePaul University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 93 bachelors’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 full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at DePaul University
Aurora University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. Aurora University is located in Aurora, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 21 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Illinois at Springfield landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. This small school is located in Springfield, Illinois, and it awarded 10 bachelors’s liberal arts 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%.
Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at University of Illinois at Springfield
Monmouth College did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #16. Located in Monmouth, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 2 degrees to qualified bachelors’s liberal arts students in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Quincy University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. Quincy U is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Quincy, Illinois. It awarded 2 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Knox College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Galesburg, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 2 degrees to qualified bachelors’s liberal arts 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%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read more about Liberal Arts General Studies at Knox College
Lincoln Christian University ranked #19 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois list. Lincoln Christian College and Seminary is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Lincoln, Illinois. It awarded 1 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 5.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Lincoln Christian University Liberal Arts General Studies Report
Roosevelt University ranked #20 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 8 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s liberal arts students in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at Roosevelt University
Lewis University ranked #21 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois list. Lewis is a private not-for-profit institution located in Romeoville, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.0% 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%.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is located in Edwardsville, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 10 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees to qualified students.
Trinity International University - Illinois came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. TIU Illinois is a small school located in Deerfield, Illinois that handed out 1 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
McKendree University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking. This small school is located in Lebanon, Illinois, and it awarded 2 bachelors’s liberal arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at McKendree
University of Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Liberal Arts Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #25. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 20 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s liberal arts students in 2020-2021.
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 undergraduate 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 undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Liberal Arts General Studies at UChicago
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
