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2022 Best Value Colleges for Natural Resources & Conservation (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

12 Ranked Colleges
631 Degrees Awarded
$15,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

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 “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 30,341 people earned their degree in natural resources and conservation, making the major the 26th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, natural resources and conservation graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,196 and had an average of $25,077 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 631 natural resources and conservation graduates with average earnings and debt of $27,920 and $23,093 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 12 colleges that offered a degree in natural resources and conservation. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent natural resources and conservation programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the natural resources and conservation program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Natural Resources & Conservation Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 12 Best Value Colleges for Natural Resources & Conservation (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

#1

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 61 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

UChicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Chicago is $2,712 for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 100%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. 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 student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Chicago

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #2 spot on the list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large school located in Champaign, Illinois that handed out 100 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UIUC, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UIUC is $5,477 for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at UIUC

#3

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northern Illinois University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. Northern Illinois University is a fairly large school located in Dekalb, Illinois that handed out 34 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k list, NIU has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $15,281 for Illinois Natural Resources & Conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Northern Illinois University.

Full NIU Natural Resources & Conservation Report

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Springfield landed the #4 spot on the list. UIS is a small school located in Springfield, Illinois that handed out 32 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

UIS not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Springfield is $9,771 for Illinois Natural Resources & Conservation students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full University of Illinois at Springfield Natural Resources & Conservation Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Carbondale, Illinois, and it awarded 77 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC also made our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #9. It costs about $13,658 for Illinois Natural Resources & Conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend SIUC.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

#6

Augustana College

Rock Island, Illinois

Augustana College landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This small school is located in Rock Island, Illinois, and it awarded 29 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Augustana, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $20,355 for Illinois Natural Resources & Conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Augustana College.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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 Natural Resources & Conservation at Augustana College

#7

Knox College

Galesburg, Illinois

Knox College landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Knox is a small school located in Galesburg, Illinois that handed out 16 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

Knox did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $16,828 for Illinois Natural Resources & Conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Knox.

The low student loan default rate of 4.8% 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%. 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.

Full Knox Natural Resources & Conservation Report

Northeastern Illinois University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Northeastern Illinois University is a public institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 18 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k list, Northeastern Illinois University has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $14,816 for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Northeastern Illinois University.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at Northeastern Illinois University

#9

Lake Forest College

Lake Forest, Illinois

Lake Forest College landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Lake Forest College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Lake Forest, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 16 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Lake Forest also made our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend Lake Forest College is $18,192 for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Lake Forest College Natural Resources & Conservation Report

#10

Illinois Wesleyan University

Bloomington, Illinois

Illinois Wesleyan University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #10. Located in Bloomington, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 8 diplomas to qualified ’s natural resources and conservation students in 2019-2020.

Illinois Wesleyan also took the #4 spot in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $18,570 for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Illinois Wesleyan University.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 Natural Resources & Conservation at Illinois Wesleyan

#11

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

With a ranking of #11, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s natural resources and conservation degrees to 95 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Loyola Chicago, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $29,440 for illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Loyola Chicago.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, 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 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Loyola University Chicago

#12

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. DePaul is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 32 ’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois natural resources & conservation students whose families make $0-$30k list, DePaul has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for DePaul is $26,173 for Illinois Natural Resources & Conservation students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full DePaul Natural Resources & Conservation Report

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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 Lynn Betts.

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