Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Physics (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

13 Ranked Colleges
339 Degrees Awarded
$14,300 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor's 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. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Physics is the 67th most popular major in the country with 14,123 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, physics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $42,475 and had an average of $22,421 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 492 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,100 and $21,278 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 339 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,319 and $24,183 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 13 colleges that offer a degree in physics. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great physics programs and cost less that 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 physics program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Physics 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 Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 13 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Physics (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

#1

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois
#2 in overall quality

Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $1,866 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Northwestern University.

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%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Physics at Northwestern

#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 Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 63 bachelors’s physics degrees to qualified students.

UChicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $2,712 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Chicago.

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 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 school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full University of Chicago Physics Report

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 #3 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large public school situated in Champaign, Illinois. It awarded 68 bachelors’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $5,477 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UIUC.

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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Physics at UIUC

#8 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, this fairly large public school awarded 4 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s physics students in 2019-2020.

SIUE also made our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is $8,055 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Physics at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

#9 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 #5 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s physics degrees to 8 students in 2019-2020.

UIC also made our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #9. The estimated yearly cost for UIC is $10,648 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

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%.

Full University of Illinois at Chicago Physics Report

#6

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois
#11 in overall quality

Northern Illinois University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. NIU is a public institution located in Dekalb, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

NIU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Northern Illinois University is $15,281 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Physics at Northern Illinois University

#10 in overall quality

Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. SIUC is a fairly large public school situated in Carbondale, Illinois. It awarded 7 bachelors’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale is $13,658 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Physics at SIUC

#8

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois

Illinois State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Illinois State University is a large school located in Normal, Illinois that handed out 29 bachelors’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois State also made our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #6. It costs about $14,470 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Illinois State.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Physics at Illinois State University

#9

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois
#13 in overall quality

Western Illinois University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized school located in Macomb, Illinois that handed out 3 bachelors’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

WIU also made our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #13. The yearly cost to attend WIU is $13,942 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Physics at Western Illinois University

#5 in overall quality

Illinois Institute of Technology came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois Tech also took the #5 spot in our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Illinois Tech is $17,222 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

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 school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 2.9% 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%.

Full Illinois Tech Physics Report

#11

Columbia College Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

Columbia College Chicago ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 3 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s physics students in 2019-2020.

Columbia also made our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #12. The yearly cost to attend Columbia College Chicago is $27,120 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Columbia Physics Report

#12

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

With a ranking of #12, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s 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 bachelors’s physics degrees to 17 students in 2019-2020.

Loyola Chicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Loyola University Chicago is $29,440 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

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

#13

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois
#7 in overall quality

DePaul University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. DePaul is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 6 bachelors’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

DePaul not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend DePaul is $26,173 for illinois bachelor’s degree physics 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%.

Read full report on Physics at DePaul 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

Featured Physical Sciences Schools

Find Schools Near You