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2022 Best Value Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

7 Ranked Colleges
128 Degrees Awarded
$10,800 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 7,036 people earned their degree in geology and earth sciences, making the major the 101st most popular in the United States.

Across Illinois, there were 128 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 7 colleges that offered a degree in geology and earth sciences. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality geology and earth sciences 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 geology and earth sciences program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Geology & Earth Sciences 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 Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college 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 Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

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

Top 7 Best Value Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences (Income $0-$30k) 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 Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Northwestern University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 19 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $1,866 for illinois geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Northwestern.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 6 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 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Northwestern University

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s geology degrees to 22 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UIUC, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $5,477 for Illinois Geology students whose families make $0-$30k.

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

Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Geology & Earth Sciences Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Chicago. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. UIC is a public institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 21 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, UIC has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $10,648 for Illinois Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UIC.

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 full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at UIC

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #4 spot on the list. SIUC is a fairly large school located in Carbondale, Illinois that handed out 12 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $13,658 for Illinois Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#5

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Illinois University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. NIU is a public institution located in Dekalb, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 20 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

NIU also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #6. It costs about $15,281 for Illinois Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend NIU.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Northern Illinois University

#6

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois

With a ranking of #6, Illinois State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Illinois State University is a public institution located in Normal, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $14,470 for illinois geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Illinois State.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Illinois State

#7

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois

Western Illinois University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized school located in Macomb, Illinois that handed out 1 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, WIU has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $13,942 for Illinois Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend WIU.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Western Illinois University

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 Kelvinsong.

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