2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. 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 Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
Music is the 40th most popular major in the country with 27,047 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, music graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $25,639 and had an average of $28,653 in loans still to pay off.
Across Illinois, there were 1,073 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $23,747 and $27,432 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 649 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,319 and $24,183 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 29 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in music. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great music programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the music program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Music in Illinois (With Aid)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 51 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
UIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend UIUC is $15,880 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 29 schools in the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Eastern Illinois University landed the #2 spot on the list. Eastern Illinois University is located in Charleston, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 13 bachelors’s music degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at EIU, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for EIU is $14,607 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid.
Out of the 29 schools in the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Illinois University landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Macomb, Illinois, this medium-sized public school awarded 38 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s music students in 2019-2020.
WIU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend WIU is $16,210 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid.
Out of the 29 schools in the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #4 spot on the list. This large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 9 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid list, UIC has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UIC is $13,312 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Music at University of Illinois at Chicago
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northern Illinois University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. NIU is a fairly large school located in Dekalb, Illinois that handed out 37 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
NIU also made our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #14. It costs about $18,259 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid per year to attend Northern Illinois University.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #6. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is located in Edwardsville, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 23 bachelors’s music degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at SIUE, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for SIUE is $14,423 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
Northeastern Illinois University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Northeastern Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 10 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Northeastern Illinois University, the school also landed the #22 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $15,843 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid per year to attend Northeastern Illinois University.
Northwestern University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Evanston, Illinois, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 98 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s music students in 2019-2020.
Northwestern did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Northwestern is $24,664 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The 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. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Illinois State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Normal, Illinois, and it awarded 42 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Illinois State, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $20,895 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend Illinois State University.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #10, Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in Carbondale, Illinois, and it awarded 10 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at SIUC, the school also landed the #24 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for SIUC is $16,945 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid.
North Park University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. This small school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 14 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
North Park did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend North Park is $19,170 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
The impressive 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.
Millikin University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Decatur, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 30 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s music students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Millikin, the school also landed the #12 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $21,331 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend Millikin.
The impressive 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.
University of St Francis did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #13. University of Saint Francis is a small school located in Joliet, Illinois that handed out 6 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
University of Saint Francis did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #25 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of St Francis is $17,538 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #14, Olivet Nazarene University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Bourbonnais, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s music students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Olivet Nazarene, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $20,195 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid per year to attend Olivet Nazarene University.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Wheaton College Illinois came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Wheaton, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 26 degrees to qualified bachelors’s music students in 2019-2020.
Wheaton College Illinois not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $25,358 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid per year to attend Wheaton College Illinois.
The low student loan default rate of 0.7% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The 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.
Elmhurst University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Elmhurst University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Elmhurst, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Elmhurst not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #18 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend Elmhurst is $21,485 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Dominican University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. River Forest, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s music degrees to 1 students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $19,268 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend Dominican University.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
With a ranking of #18, Augustana College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Augustana College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Rock Island, Illinois. It awarded 3 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
Augustana not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. The estimated yearly cost for Augustana College is $23,874 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Trinity International University - Illinois ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. TIU Illinois is a private not-for-profit institution located in Deerfield, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for TIU Illinois is $21,204 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Bradley University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking. Bradley University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Peoria, Illinois. It awarded 8 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid list, Bradley has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $25,634 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend Bradley.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
North Central College ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. North Central is located in Naperville, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 8 bachelors’s music degrees to qualified students.
North Central did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #17 on our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. It costs about $24,786 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend North Central.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #22, Lake Forest College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Lake Forest is a private not-for-profit institution located in Lake Forest, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Lake Forest, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $26,426 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend Lake Forest College.
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%.
Knox College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #23. Knox is located in Galesburg, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 10 bachelors’s music degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $22,292 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid per year to attend Knox College.
The low student loan default rate of 4.8% 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 impressive 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.
With a ranking of #24, Roosevelt University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Roosevelt is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 27 bachelors’s music degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $22,749 for illinois bachelor’s degree music students with aid per year to attend Roosevelt University.
With a ranking of #25, Illinois Wesleyan University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Illinois Wesleyan University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Bloomington, Illinois. It awarded 15 bachelors’s music degrees in 2019-2020.
Illinois Wesleyan also took the #6 spot in our “Best Music Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $26,039 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Music students with aid per year to attend Illinois Wesleyan University.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
- Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Music in the Great Lakes Region (With Aid)
- Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Music (With Aid)
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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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