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2022 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics in Illinois (With Aid)

4 Ranked Colleges
62 Degrees Awarded
$22,700 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 1,268 people earned their degree in astronomy and astrophysics, making the major the 222nd most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, astronomy and astrophysics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $27,700 and had an average of $21,346 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 62 astronomy and astrophysics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 4 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in astronomy and astrophysics. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great astronomy and astrophysics programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the astronomy and astrophysics program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools

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 Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college 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. 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.

Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Astronomy & Astrophysics in Illinois (With Aid)

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large public school situated in Champaign, Illinois. It awarded 38 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois astronomy students with aid list, UIUC has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $15,880 for illinois astronomy students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at UIUC

#2

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the #2 spot on the list. Northwestern is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 12 ’s astronomy degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern is $24,664 for Illinois Astronomy students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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 Astronomy & Astrophysics at Northwestern University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois Institute of Technology. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Illinois Tech is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 ’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Illinois Tech, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Illinois Tech is $22,831 for Illinois Astronomy students with aid.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Astronomy & Astrophysics at Illinois Institute of Technology

#4

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. University of Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 8 ’s astronomy degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UChicago, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Astronomy & Astrophysics Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Chicago is $27,315 for illinois astronomy students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 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. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Astronomy & Astrophysics at University of 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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