2024 Best Acting Master's Degree Schools in Illinois

Acting is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #437 most popular master's degree program in the country. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

College Factual looked at 2 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Acting Master's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 14 master's degrees in acting during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Master’s Degree Schools List

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

• Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to acting students as compared to other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other acting students want to attend this school to pursue a master's degree.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized acting related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for acting students working on their master's degree.

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 Acting Master's Degree Schools in Illinois list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Acting in Illinois

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in acting.

Top Illinois Schools for a Master's in Acting

1

Northwestern University
Evanston, IL

Northwestern University is a good decision for individuals interested in a master's degree in acting. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston.More information about a master’s in acting from Northwestern University

2

Columbia College Chicago
Chicago, IL

Master's Degree Highest Degree Type

7 Annual Graduates

Columbia College Chicago is a great option for individuals interested in a master's degree in acting. Located in the large city of Chicago, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a master’s in acting from Columbia College Chicago

2

DePaul University
Chicago, IL

Master's Degree Highest Degree Type

7 Annual Graduates

DePaul University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a master's degree in acting. Located in the large city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in acting from DePaul University

Best Acting Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Acting Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Ohio	494	3

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Rankings in Majors Related to Acting

One of 11 majors within the Drama & Theater Arts area of study, Acting has other similar majors worth exploring.

Most Popular Related Majors

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Theater Arts	38
Playwriting & Screenwriting	35
Directing & Theatrical Production	13

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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 the rest 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).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Donald Judge. More about our data sources and methodologies.