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2022 Best Value Colleges for Geography in Illinois (With Aid)

12 Ranked Colleges
182 Degrees Awarded
$19,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Geography is the 144th most popular major in the country with 5,476 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across Illinois, there were 182 geography graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 12 colleges that offer a degree in geography. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent geography programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the geography program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” 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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

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

Top 12 Best Value Colleges for Geography in Illinois (With Aid)

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 #1 for the Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 20 ’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC also made our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $15,880 for illinois geography students with aid per year to attend UIUC.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Geography at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, this fairly large public school handed out 38 diplomas to qualified ’s geography students in 2019-2020.

SIUE also took the #6 spot in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $14,423 for illinois geography students with aid per year to attend SIUE.

Read more about Geography at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

#3

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Illinois University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. NIU is located in Dekalb, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 17 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.

NIU also took the #7 spot in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $18,259 for Illinois Geography students with aid per year to attend Northern Illinois University.

Read full report on Geography at Northern Illinois University

#4

Eastern Illinois University

Charleston, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern Illinois University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. EIU is a medium-sized public school situated in Charleston, Illinois. It awarded 14 ’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at EIU, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Eastern Illinois University is $14,607 for Illinois Geography students with aid.

Read full report on Geography at EIU

#5

Chicago State University

Chicago, Illinois

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Chicago State University landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this small public school handed out 2 diplomas to qualified ’s geography students in 2019-2020.

CSU also took the #12 spot in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Chicago State University is $11,733 for illinois geography students with aid.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read more about Geography at Chicago State University

#6

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois

With a ranking of #6, Illinois State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Normal, Illinois, and it awarded 31 ’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois geography students with aid list, Illinois State has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Illinois State is $20,895 for illinois geography students with aid.

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 Geography at Illinois State

Northeastern Illinois University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #7. Northeastern Illinois University is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 8 ’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

Northeastern Illinois University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $15,843 for Illinois Geography students with aid per year to attend Northeastern Illinois University.

Read full report on Geography at Northeastern Illinois University

#8

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois

Northwestern University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #8. Northwestern University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 1 ’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Northwestern is $24,664 for Illinois Geography students with aid.

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%. 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. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Northwestern Geography Report

#9

Augustana College

Rock Island, Illinois

Augustana College landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Rock Island, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 17 diplomas to qualified ’s geography students in 2019-2020.

Augustana did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Augustana College is $23,874 for Illinois Geography students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Augustana Geography Report

#10

Elmhurst University

Elmhurst, Illinois

Elmhurst University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #10. Located in Elmhurst, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 2 degrees to qualified ’s geography students in 2019-2020.

Elmhurst also took the #8 spot in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Elmhurst University is $21,485 for illinois geography students with aid.

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 Geography Report

#11

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

University of Chicago landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.

UChicago also took the #1 spot in our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Chicago is $27,315 for illinois geography students with aid.

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 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.

Read full report on Geography at University of Chicago

#12

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geography Schools in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. DePaul is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 14 ’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

DePaul did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best Geography Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $30,090 for illinois geography students with aid per year to attend DePaul.

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 Geography 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

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Couleur.

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