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2023 Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in Illinois

10 Ranked Colleges
414 Degrees Awarded
$51,622 Avg Salary
Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master's

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for veterans. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s” ranking.

Public Administration is the 60th most popular major in the country with 16,905 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, public administration graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $51,352 and had an average of $29,054 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 446 public administration graduates with average earnings and debt of $51,622 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s” ranking analyzed 10 colleges that offered a degree in public administration. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great public administration programs and a strong support system for veterans and active service members.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the public administration program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran population. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

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The public admin school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s”.

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. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin.

Top 10 Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in Illinois

1

Out of the 10 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #1 spot on the list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s public admin degrees to 54 students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, UIC has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 1 of the 33,518 students enrolled at UIC were GI Bill® students, of which 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $23,878. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 veteran student life at UIC]](/colleges/university-of-illinois-at-chicago/student-life/veterans/)

2

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s list. Edwardsville, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s public admin degrees to 37 students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, SIUE has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.Among the 12,860 students enrolled at SIUE, 3 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 2 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $23,082. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

Full Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Veteran Student Life Report

3
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend DePaul University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 50 degrees to qualified masters’s public admin students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, DePaul has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 528 of the 21,922 students enrolled at DePaul were GI Bill® students, of which 367 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $14,957. On top of their other funding sources, 101 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 DePaul Veteran Student Life Report

4
Aurora crest
Aurora University
Aurora, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Aurora University. The school came in at #4 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s. Aurora is a medium-sized school located in Aurora, Illinois that handed out 29 masters’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, Aurora has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.According to our most recent data, Aurora supports 6,265 students, and 3 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 1 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,999. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Aurora does offer credit for military training for eligible students.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 Aurora University Veteran Student Life Report

5

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Springfield. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s list. Located in Springfield, Illinois, this small public school handed out 48 degrees to qualified masters’s public admin students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, UIS has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 214 of the 4,146 students enrolled at UIS were GI Bill® students, of which 106 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,253. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 Springfield Veteran Student Life Report

6

Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s ranking. SIUC is a fairly large public school situated in Carbondale, Illinois. It awarded 10 masters’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

SIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list.According to our most recent data, SIUC supports 11,366 students, and 1 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 0 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $0. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Southern Illinois University Carbondale]](/colleges/southern-illinois-university-carbondale/student-life/veterans/)

7
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

Northwestern University ranked #7 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s list. Evanston, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s public admin degrees to 69 students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, Northwestern has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 1 of the 22,603 students enrolled at Northwestern were GI Bill® students, of which 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $399. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.

With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 undergraduate 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.

Read More…

8

Northern Illinois University ranked #8 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s list. Northern Illinois University is located in Dekalb, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 35 masters’s public admin degrees to qualified students.

NIU also made our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #6.According to our most recent data, NIU supports 16,769 students, and 480 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 207 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $7,822. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program.

Full Northern Illinois University Veteran Student Life Report

9
GSU crest
Governors State University
University Park, Illinois

Governors State University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s ranking. Governors State University is a small public school situated in University Park, Illinois. It awarded 19 masters’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

GSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list.Our most recent data shows that 146 of the 4,650 students enrolled at Governors State University were GI Bill® students, of which 80 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $7,291. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Governors State University offers credit for military training for eligible students.

Read More…

10
NLU crest
National Louis University
Chicago, Illinois

National Louis University did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Illinois for Public Admin for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #10. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 15 masters’s public admin degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree vets studying public admin list, NLU has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 15 of the 7,402 students enrolled at National Louis University were GI Bill® students, of which 14 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $9,078. On top of their other funding sources, 1 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. National Louis University does offer credit for military training for eligible students.

Full National Louis University Veteran Student Life Report

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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