by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. We have ranked 28 schools for Women’s Tennis by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To help you decide, 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 University of Chicago, our #1 college for Women's Tennis. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $18,060 per participant, with expenses of about $18,060 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Northwestern University earned the #2 place for student athletes. Based in Evanston, IL, Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 86%. The program generates about $96,599 in revenue per athlete, against $157,867 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $53,919.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ranked #3 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is a public school based in Champaign, IL. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign records an NCAA APR of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 100%. The program generates about $36,945 in revenue per athlete, compared with $203,501 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $25,398 per athlete.
Illinois Wesleyan University ranked #4 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. Located in Bloomington, IL, Illinois Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $7,488 in revenue per athlete, against $7,488 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Illinois Institute of Technology is one of the top schools for Women's Tennis, at #5. Located in Chicago, IL, Illinois Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $9,841 in revenue per athlete, against $9,841 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
DePaul University came in at #6 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Chicago, IL. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 78%. Team revenue averages $80,456 per participant, against $80,456 in expenses. The school awards about $23,928 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Illinois Chicago placed #7 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. University of Illinois Chicago is a public school based in Chicago, IL. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 75% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $78,381 per participant, compared with $78,381 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $15,167 per athlete.
Illinois State University did well this year, earning the #8 position. Located in Normal, IL, Illinois State University is a public institution. Illinois State University records an NCAA APR of 991, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 100% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $58,869, compared with $58,869 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $13,477 per athlete.
Lewis University came in at #9 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Romeoville, IL. The program generates about $29,631 in revenue per athlete, against $29,556 in expenses. The school awards about $9,669 in athletic aid per athlete.
Lake Forest College came in at #10 in this year's ranking. Based in Lake Forest, IL, Lake Forest College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $8,209 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $8,209 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
North Central College ranked #11 on our 2026 list for Women's Tennis. This private not-for-profit school is set in Naperville, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,004, compared with $4,656 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Northern Illinois University ranked #12 on our 2026 list for Women's Tennis. Northern Illinois University is a public school based in Dekalb, IL. The team's NCAA APR score is 992, alongside a GSR of 88%. Its federal graduation rate is 60%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $54,218, with expenses of about $54,218 per participant. Athletic aid averages $16,138 per athlete.
Western Illinois University ranked #13 on our 2026 list for Women's Tennis. Located in Macomb, IL, Western Illinois University is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. About 0% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $28,795 in revenue per athlete, against $28,795 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $10,303 per athlete.
Bradley University came in at #14 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Peoria, IL. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 983, with a Graduation Success Rate of 88%. The federal graduation rate stands at 71%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $36,941, with expenses of about $36,941 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $16,583.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville placed #15 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. This public school is set in Edwardsville, IL. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville records an NCAA APR of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 57% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $31,033 in revenue per athlete, against $31,033 in expenses. The school awards about $8,334 in athletic aid per athlete.
Elmhurst University placed #16 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. Elmhurst University is a private not-for-profit school based in Elmhurst, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $1,866, against $1,851 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Eastern Illinois University placed #17 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. Located in Charleston, IL, Eastern Illinois University is a public institution. The Graduation Success Rate here is 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 67%. The program generates about $30,747 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $30,747 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $7,653.
University of Illinois Springfield did well this year, earning the #18 position. Located in Springfield, IL, University of Illinois Springfield is a public institution. The program generates about $17,301 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $17,301 per participant. Athletic aid averages $4,768 per athlete.
McKendree University placed #19 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. Based in Lebanon, IL, McKendree University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $35,399, compared with $35,399 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $6,695.
Illinois College placed #20 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. This private not-for-profit school is set in Jacksonville, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,265, compared with $4,265 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Millikin University landed the #21 spot this year. Located in Decatur, IL, Millikin University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $9,777 per participant, against $9,777 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
North Park University placed #22 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. North Park University is a private not-for-profit school based in Chicago, IL. The program generates about $4,934 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $4,934 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $32.
Roosevelt University placed #23 among the best colleges for Women's Tennis. This private not-for-profit school is set in Chicago, IL. The program generates about $21,129 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $21,129 per participant. Athletic aid averages $8,633 per athlete.
Concordia University-Chicago landed the #24 spot this year. Based in River Forest, IL, Concordia University-Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,385 in revenue per athlete, compared with $6,385 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Quincy University ranked #25 on our 2026 list for Women's Tennis. This private not-for-profit school is set in Quincy, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $25,778, with expenses of about $26,154 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $8,507.
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
More about our data sources and methodologies.