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2022 Best Value Colleges for Photography (Income $48-$75k) in Illinois

5 Ranked Colleges
73 Degrees Awarded
Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Photography is the 291st most popular major in the country with 2,438 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across Illinois, there were 73 photography graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in photography. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great photography programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the photography program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The photography 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 “Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k”.

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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 5 Best Value Colleges for Photography (Income $48-$75k) in Illinois

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #1 spot on the list. UIUC is a large school located in Champaign, Illinois that handed out 11 ’s photography degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois photography students whose families make $48-$75k list, UIUC has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Photography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $13,351 for illinois photography students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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 freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Photography at UIUC

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Chicago. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s photography degrees to 1 students in 2019-2020.

UIC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Photography Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for UIC is $13,683 for Illinois Photography students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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 more about Photography at University of Illinois at Chicago

#3

Bradley University

Peoria, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Bradley University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k. Peoria, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s photography degrees to 9 students in 2019-2020.

Bradley did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Photography Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $22,865 for Illinois Photography students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Bradley University.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Photography at Bradley

#4

Columbia College Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Columbia College Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 49 degrees to qualified ’s photography students in 2019-2020.

Columbia also made our “Best Photography Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend Columbia College Chicago is $31,071 for Illinois Photography students whose families make $48-$75k.

Full Columbia College Chicago Photography Report

#5

American Academy of Art

Chicago, Illinois

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, American Academy of Art landed the #5 spot on the list. This small school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 2 ’s photography degrees in 2019-2020.

The Academy also took the #5 spot in our “Best Photography Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend The Academy is $31,382 for Illinois Photography students whose families make $48-$75k.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 7 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 Photography at American Academy of Art

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.

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