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2022 Best Value Colleges for Philosophy (Income $30-$48k) in Illinois

9 Ranked Colleges
417 Degrees Awarded
$15,500 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Philosophy is the 81st most popular major in the country with 10,015 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, philosophy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,067 and had an average of $22,199 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 417 philosophy graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,300 and $23,445 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking analyzed 9 colleges that offered a degree in philosophy. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality philosophy programs that also have a lower cost than 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 philosophy program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

Top 9 Best Value Colleges for Philosophy (Income $30-$48k) in Illinois

#1

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k list. This large school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 25 ’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern is $3,995 for Illinois Philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read more about Philosophy at Northwestern University

#2

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k list. This fairly large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 76 ’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.

UChicago also took the #1 spot in our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UChicago is $2,800 for Illinois Philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%. The low student loan default rate of 0.6% 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%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read full report on Philosophy at University of Chicago

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #3 spot on the list. UIUC is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 34 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $8,464 for Illinois Philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.

Full UIUC Philosophy Report

#4

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois State University landed the #4 spot on the list. Normal, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s philosophy degrees to 17 students in 2019-2020.

Illinois State also took the #5 spot in our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $14,999 for illinois philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Illinois State.

The low student loan default rate of 4.4% 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 Philosophy at Illinois State University

#5

Wheaton College Illinois

Wheaton, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Wheaton College Illinois. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k. Wheaton, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s philosophy degrees to 17 students in 2019-2020.

Wheaton College Illinois did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Wheaton College Illinois is $16,212 for illinois philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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 low student loan default rate of 0.7% 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 Philosophy at Wheaton College Illinois

#6

Lake Forest College

Lake Forest, Illinois

Lake Forest College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Lake Forest is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Lake Forest, Illinois. It awarded 9 ’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.

Lake Forest also took the #8 spot in our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Lake Forest College is $19,152 for Illinois Philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Philosophy at Lake Forest College

#7

Elmhurst University

Elmhurst, Illinois

Elmhurst University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. Elmhurst University is located in Elmhurst, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 3 ’s philosophy degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Elmhurst, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Elmhurst is $17,837 for Illinois Philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Elmhurst University Philosophy Report

#8

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k list. DePaul is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 23 ’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at DePaul, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $25,842 for illinois philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend DePaul University.

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%.

Read full report on Philosophy at DePaul University

#9

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

Loyola University Chicago did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Philosophy Schools in Illinois For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #9. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 41 ’s philosophy degrees in 2019-2020.

Loyola Chicago also took the #6 spot in our “Best Philosophy Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Loyola University Chicago is $29,788 for Illinois Philosophy students whose families make $30-$48k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. 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 Philosophy 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.

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