by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. This list ranks 32 programs for Men’s Soccer by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
So you can compare your options, College Factual evaluates each program using a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and aid per athlete from the EADA survey), and overall school quality, drawing on NCAA, U.S. Department of Education EADA, and IPEDS data. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
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Learn more about these schools below:
Leading the list is Northwestern University, our #1 college for Men's Soccer. This private not-for-profit school is set in Evanston, IL. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 999, and a 95% Graduation Success Rate. About 95% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $25,417 per participant, compared with $56,925 spent per athlete. The school awards about $53,919 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Chicago came in at #2 on this year's ranking for Men's Soccer. Based in Chicago, IL, University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $12,731 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $12,731 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Loyola University Chicago ranked #3 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Located in Chicago, IL, Loyola University Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 994, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 56%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $45,004, with expenses of about $45,004 per participant. Athletic aid averages $23,325 per athlete.
Illinois Wesleyan University came in at #4 on this year's ranking for Men's Soccer. Illinois Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit school based in Bloomington, IL. Team revenue averages $6,228 per participant, against $6,228 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Northern Illinois University ranked #5 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Northern Illinois University is a public school based in Dekalb, IL. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 983, with a Graduation Success Rate of 86%. Its federal graduation rate is 65%. The program generates about $33,280 in revenue per athlete, against $32,909 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $16,138.
Illinois Institute of Technology placed #6 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Illinois Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit school based in Chicago, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,394, compared with $4,394 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
North Central College came in at #7 in this year's ranking. North Central College is a private not-for-profit school based in Naperville, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,128, with expenses of about $5,467 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Bradley University came in at #8 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Peoria, IL. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 977, with a Graduation Success Rate of 92%. Its federal graduation rate is 47%. Team revenue averages $34,982 per participant, compared with $34,982 spent per athlete. The school awards about $16,583 in athletic aid per athlete.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville placed #9 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. This public school is set in Edwardsville, IL. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville records an NCAA APR of 983, alongside a GSR of 96%. The federal graduation rate stands at 52%. The program generates about $29,895 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $29,895 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $8,334.
Lewis University placed #10 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Located in Romeoville, IL, Lewis University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $13,091, with expenses of about $13,091 per participant. The school awards about $9,669 in athletic aid per athlete.
Lake Forest College ranked #11 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Located in Lake Forest, IL, Lake Forest College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $4,633 per participant, compared with $4,633 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
DePaul University ranked #12 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Located in Chicago, IL, DePaul University is a private not-for-profit institution. DePaul University records an NCAA APR of 960, alongside a GSR of 78%. Its federal graduation rate is 61%. The program generates about $43,694 in revenue per athlete, against $43,694 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $23,928 per athlete.
Western Illinois University ranked #13 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Based in Macomb, IL, Western Illinois University is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 969, with a Graduation Success Rate of 92%. The federal graduation rate stands at 70%. The program generates about $19,229 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $19,229 per participant. Athletic aid averages $10,303 per athlete.
University of Illinois Chicago came in at #14 in this year's ranking. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Illinois Chicago is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 970, and a 71% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 59%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $33,875, compared with $33,875 spent per athlete. The school awards about $15,167 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Illinois Springfield ranked #15 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Located in Springfield, IL, University of Illinois Springfield is a public institution. Team revenue averages $13,596 per participant, against $13,596 in expenses. The school awards about $4,768 in athletic aid per athlete.
Elmhurst University ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Elmhurst University is a private not-for-profit school based in Elmhurst, IL. Team revenue averages $3,957 per participant, against $3,891 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
McKendree University placed #17 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Based in Lebanon, IL, McKendree University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $18,985 in revenue per athlete, compared with $18,985 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $6,695.
Knox College landed the #18 spot this year. Based in Galesburg, IL, Knox College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $3,865, with expenses of about $3,194 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Illinois College ranked #19 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Illinois College is a private not-for-profit school based in Jacksonville, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,012, with expenses of about $6,012 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Eastern Illinois University ranked #20 on our 2026 list for Men's Soccer. Based in Charleston, IL, Eastern Illinois University is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 973, alongside a GSR of 86%. The federal graduation rate stands at 18%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $10,328, with expenses of about $10,328 per participant. Athletic aid averages $7,653 per athlete.
North Park University placed #21 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Located in Chicago, IL, North Park University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,952, against $6,952 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $32.
Aurora University landed the #22 spot this year. Aurora University is a private not-for-profit school based in Aurora, IL. Team revenue averages $4,669 per participant, against $4,669 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Chicago State University placed #23 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Based in Chicago, IL, Chicago State University is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 955, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. Team revenue averages $12,644 per participant, with expenses of about $12,644 per participant. Athletic aid averages $9,877 per athlete.
Roosevelt University came in at #24 in this year's ranking. Located in Chicago, IL, Roosevelt University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $14,556 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $14,556 per participant. Athletic aid averages $8,633 per athlete.
Millikin University placed #25 among the best colleges for Men's Soccer. Millikin University is a private not-for-profit school based in Decatur, IL. The program generates about $4,561 in revenue per athlete, against $4,561 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
These programs also stood out among the best this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This list is compiled by College Factual, 2026 edition. Rankings consider a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and athletic aid from the federal EADA survey), and overall school quality. The current methodology measures academic-athletic quality and does not include team win/loss performance.
References
Read more about our data sources and methodologies.