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Leading the list is Moody Bible Institute, our #1 most diverse college in Illinois. It scores 80.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 68.7, alongside a 99.6 gender-diversity score.
by our College Data Analytics Team
If you’re seeking a diverse and multi-faceted college experience, you’ve come to the right place. We have ranked 135 institutions by overall diversity in Illinois, using our 2026 methodology.
This ranking is based on several factors of the student body: racial/ethnic makeup, geographic origin, gender balance, and age range. So you can compare your options, College Factual analyzed 135 colleges, drawing primarily on U.S. Department of Education data (IPEDS and College Scorecard). Learn more about our ranking methodology.
Your ideal mix depends on what matters most to you. Narrow your list by location, or explore the overall, racial-ethnic, gender, economic, and age diversity rankings, or other rankings below.
Want to compare schools head to head? Check out College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter most to you.
Here are the top-ranked colleges:
Leading the list is Moody Bible Institute, our #1 most diverse college in Illinois. It scores 80.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 68.7, alongside a 99.6 gender-diversity score.
You'll find a welcoming community at National University of Health Sciences, which ranked #2 this year. On overall diversity, it scores 78.6 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 64.3, and gender diversity 95.5.
DeVry University-Illinois earned the #3 place in Illinois. On overall diversity, it scores 78.6 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 67.5, and gender diversity 91.9.
You'll find a welcoming community at Northwestern University, which ranked #4 this year. Northwestern University scores 77.8 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 78.8, with a gender-diversity score of 99.4.
Columbia College Chicago came in at #5 on this year's Most Diverse Colleges ranking in Illinois. The school's overall diversity score is 77.3 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 67.8, and gender diversity 96.2.
Roosevelt University came in at #6 in this year's ranking. It scores 76.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 78.2, with a gender-diversity score of 95.8.
North Park University landed the #7 spot in Illinois this year. The school's overall diversity score is 75.9 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 77.4, alongside a 97.6 gender-diversity score.
Rockford University placed #8 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. On overall diversity, it scores 75.6 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 72.4, with a gender-diversity score of 98.2.
Judson University placed #9 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. On overall diversity, it scores 75.1 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 70.9, alongside a 99.2 gender-diversity score.
DePaul University came in at #10 in this year's ranking. On overall diversity, it scores 75.0 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 74.2, and gender diversity 99.3.
University of Chicago came in at #11 in this year's ranking. University of Chicago scores 75.0 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 76.7, and gender diversity 99.5.
Rush University landed the #12 spot in Illinois this year. On overall diversity, it scores 74.7 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 63.5, with a gender-diversity score of 77.0.
Concordia University-Chicago earned the #13 position in Illinois. It scores 74.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 64.6, with a gender-diversity score of 94.6.
Olivet Nazarene University placed #14 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. Olivet Nazarene University scores 74.2 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 59.1, with a gender-diversity score of 96.7.
McKendree University placed #15 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. McKendree University scores 73.7 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 62.4, and gender diversity 98.4.
Benedictine University ranked #16 on our 2026 list of the most diverse colleges. It scores 73.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 75.9, alongside a 99.2 gender-diversity score.
Wheaton College earned the #17 position in Illinois. It scores 73.2 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 55.4, alongside a 98.8 gender-diversity score.
University of Illinois Chicago landed the #18 spot in Illinois this year. The school's overall diversity score is 72.5 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 76.8, alongside a 99.1 gender-diversity score.
Loyola University Chicago placed #19 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. Loyola University Chicago scores 72.3 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 70.0, and gender diversity 90.5.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago ranked #20 on our 2026 list of the most diverse colleges. School of the Art Institute of Chicago scores 72.3 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 74.4, and gender diversity 81.7.
University of Illinois Springfield landed the #21 spot in Illinois this year. On overall diversity, it scores 72.2 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 67.1, with a gender-diversity score of 99.9.
Illinois Institute of Technology came in at #22 in this year's ranking. Illinois Institute of Technology scores 71.8 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 65.5, alongside a 94.7 gender-diversity score.
Lewis University landed the #23 spot in Illinois this year. The school's overall diversity score is 71.8 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 69.5, with a gender-diversity score of 100.0.
City Colleges of Chicago-Harry S Truman College placed #24 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. On overall diversity, it scores 71.7 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 64.2, with a gender-diversity score of 99.0.
Trinity Christian College placed #25 among the most diverse colleges in Illinois. On overall diversity, it scores 71.2 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 68.1, alongside a 98.9 gender-diversity score.
These colleges also placed near the top this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This ranking is based on several factors of the student body: racial/ethnic makeup, geographic representation, gender balance, and age range. The racial-ethnic minorities percentage is calculated by taking the total number of students, subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity is unknown, and dividing by total enrollment.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition.
References
Read more about our data sources and methodologies.