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2024 Best Sociology Schools in the Great Lakes Region

79 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
3,166 Sociology Degrees Awarded
$31,085 Avg Early-Career Salary
Sociology is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #25 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 79 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for sociology students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,166 degrees in sociology during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Sociology School

Best Sociology Schools in the Great Lakes Region The sociology program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Sociology rankings. For our Best Overall Sociology School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Sociology Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Sociology
Bachelor's Degrees in Sociology
Master's Degrees in Sociology
Doctor's Degrees in Sociology

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 Sociology Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Sociology in the Great Lakes Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the sociology degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

11 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in Sociology

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In IL
68 Sociology Degrees Awarded

University of Chicago is a great choice for students pursuing a degree in sociology. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UChicago is a great university overall.

There were about 68 sociology students who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in sociology from University of Chicago

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
44 Sociology Degrees Awarded
$41,134 Median Starting Salary

Northwestern University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in sociology. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.

There were roughly 44 sociology students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the sociology major at Northwestern University earn $10,049 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in sociology from Northwestern University

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In IN
54 Sociology Degrees Awarded

It is hard to beat University of Notre Dame if you wish to pursue a degree in sociology. Notre Dame is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Notre Dame. A Best Colleges rank of #20 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Notre Dame is a great university overall.

There were approximately 54 sociology students who graduated with this degree at Notre Dame in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in sociology from University of Notre Dame

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
152 Sociology Degrees Awarded
18.4% Growth in Graduates

University of Wisconsin - Madison is a great choice for students interested in a degree in sociology. UW - Madison is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Madison. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.

There were approximately 152 sociology students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent data year. Sociology degree recipients from University of Wisconsin - Madison earn a boost of around $6,687 over the typical earnings of sociology majors.

More information about a degree in sociology from University of Wisconsin - Madison

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
155 Sociology Degrees Awarded
$30,003 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.

There were about 155 sociology students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the sociology program earn around $30,003 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in sociology from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
75 Sociology Degrees Awarded
1.3% Growth in Graduates

UIUC is a very large public university located in the small city of Champaign. A Best Colleges rank of #34 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.

There were about 75 sociology students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the sociology program state that they receive average early career wages of $32,827.

More information about a degree in sociology from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
119 Sociology Degrees Awarded
12.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #40 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Purdue is a great university overall.

There were about 119 sociology students who graduated with this degree at Purdue in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the sociology program at Purdue University - Main Campus make $4,726 more than the typical college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in sociology from Purdue University - Main Campus

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
107 Sociology Degrees Awarded
3.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #69 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Ohio State is a great university overall.

There were about 107 sociology students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent data year. Those sociology students who get their degree from Ohio State University - Main Campus receive $3,967 more than the standard sociology student.

More information about a degree in sociology from Ohio State University - Main Campus

9
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
108 Sociology Degrees Awarded
9.3% Growth in Graduates

Michigan State is a very large public university located in the small city of East Lansing. A Best Colleges rank of #74 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 108 sociology students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the sociology program report average early career wages of $31,092.

More information about a degree in sociology from Michigan State University

10

Located in the large city of Cleveland, Case Western is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #63 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Case Western is a great university overall.

There were roughly 27 sociology students who graduated with this degree at Case Western in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, sociology degree recipients generally earn about $27,596 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in sociology from Case Western Reserve University

11
DePauw crest
DePauw University
Greencastle, IN

Located in the town of Greencastle, DePauw is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 5th out of 42 schools for overall quality in the state of Indiana.

There were approximately 15 sociology students who graduated with this degree at DePauw in the most recent data year. Those sociology students who get their degree from DePauw University earn $15,604 more than the standard sociology student.

More information about a degree in sociology from DePauw University

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Sociology students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Best Sociology Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
12 Indiana University - Bloomington Bloomington, IN
13 University of Illinois at Chicago Chicago, IL
14 Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL
15 Kenyon College Gambier, OH
16 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
17 Oberlin College Oberlin, OH
18 Illinois State University Normal, IL
19 Miami University - Oxford Oxford, OH

Best Sociology Colleges by State

Explore the best sociology schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 322 550
Ohio 314 702
Illinois 304 841
Indiana 294 471
Wisconsin 273 504

View All Rankings >

Sociology is one of 13 different types of Social Sciences programs to choose from.

Sociology Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Sociology 3,143

View All Sociology Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Economics 6,916
Political Science & Government 5,797
International Relations & National Security 1,355
Anthropology 1,189
Geography & Cartography 1,187
General Social Sciences 568
Other Social Sciences 200
Urban Studies 133
Sociology & Anthropology 87
Archeology 65

View All Sociology Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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