Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois

7 Ranked Colleges
92 Degrees Awarded
$18,000 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor's in Illinois

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

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. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 92 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,319 and $24,183 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois” ranking looked at 7 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s 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.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the geology and earth sciences program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois bachelor’s degree geology students.

Top 7 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences in Illinois

#1

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois State University landed the #1 spot on the list. Illinois State is located in Normal, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 12 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree geology students list, Illinois State has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Illinois State is $20,895 for illinois bachelor’s degree geology students.

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 full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Illinois State

#2 in overall quality

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 for a Bachelor’s in Illinois. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 15 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC also took the #2 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $15,880 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

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.

Full UIUC Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#4 in overall quality

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 for a Bachelor’s in Illinois. UIC is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 18 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree geology students list, UIC has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $13,312 for illinois bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend University of Illinois at Chicago.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at University of Illinois at Chicago

#4

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois
#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Illinois University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Northern Illinois University is a fairly large school located in Dekalb, Illinois that handed out 11 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

NIU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $18,259 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Geology students per year to attend NIU.

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

#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a fairly large public school situated in Carbondale, Illinois. It awarded 4 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for SIUC is $16,945 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

#6

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois
#7 in overall quality

With a ranking of #6, Western Illinois University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. WIU is located in Macomb, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 1 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

WIU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Western Illinois University is $16,210 for illinois bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Western Illinois University

#7

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois
#1 in overall quality

Northwestern University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois list. Evanston, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s geology degrees to 10 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Northwestern, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern University is $24,664 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

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. The student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full Northwestern Geology & Earth Sciences Report

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

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.

Featured Physical Sciences Schools

Find Schools Near You