by our College Data Analytics Team
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 “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 47,549 people earned their degree in political science, making the major the 13th most popular in the United States.
Across Illinois, there were 1,470 political science graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,314 political science graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,117 and $25,584 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois” ranking looked at 44 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in political science. That schools that top this list have a program in political science in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois”.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Lake Forest College. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. Lake Forest College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Lake Forest, Illinois. It awarded 23 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois Wesleyan University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. This small school is located in Bloomington, Illinois, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Principia College. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. Principia College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Elsah, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Monmouth College. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois. Located in Monmouth, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 9 degrees to qualified bachelors’s poly sci students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Knox College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. Knox is a private not-for-profit institution located in Galesburg, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 10 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate 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. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%.
Augustana College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Rock Island, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 27 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s poly sci students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%.
Blackburn College did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #7. This small school is located in Carlinville, Illinois, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
Wheaton College Illinois came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Wheaton, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s poly sci degrees to 22 students in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Political Science at Wheaton College Illinois
Loyola University Chicago landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s poly sci degrees to 139 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% 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 Political Science at Loyola University Chicago
Illinois College landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. This small school is located in Jacksonville, Illinois, and it awarded 6 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #11 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 248 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 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 Political Science at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Chicago landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. University of Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 109 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
DePaul University ranked #13 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. DePaul is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 102 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Bradley University ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. Bradley is a medium-sized school located in Peoria, Illinois that handed out 26 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Northern Illinois University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Dekalb, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s poly sci degrees to 67 students in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #16, North Central College did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. North Central is a small school located in Naperville, Illinois that handed out 13 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% 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%.
With a ranking of #17, Northwestern University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. This large school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 117 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The impressive undergraduate 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. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Roosevelt University landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Roosevelt is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 19 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #19, University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s poly sci degrees to 97 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Political Science at University of Illinois at Chicago
Elmhurst University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #20. Elmhurst is a small school located in Elmhurst, Illinois that handed out 11 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #21, Dominican University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. This small school is located in River Forest, Illinois, and it awarded 9 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Political Science at Dominican University
Saint Xavier University landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s poly sci students in 2020-2021.
University of Illinois at Springfield landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. This small school is located in Springfield, Illinois, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s poly sci degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Political Science at University of Illinois at Springfield
With a ranking of #24, Illinois State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois list. Illinois State University is located in Normal, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 58 bachelors’s poly sci degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Political Science at Illinois State University
Millikin University landed the #25 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Poly Sci Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Decatur, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 5 degrees to qualified bachelors’s poly sci students in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate 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.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
