by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. We have ranked 35 schools for Women’s Volleyball by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To arm you with the information you need, 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.
Not quite what you need? Pick a path below.
Learn more about these schools below:
University of Chicago earned the #1 spot in this year's ranking for Women's Volleyball. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $15,002 in revenue per athlete, against $15,002 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Northwestern University came in at #2 on this year's ranking for Women's Volleyball. Based in Evanston, IL, Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 100%. Team revenue averages $102,824 per participant, with expenses of about $208,102 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $53,919.
Illinois Wesleyan University is one of the top schools for Women's Volleyball, at #3. Illinois Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit school based in Bloomington, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,927, against $8,927 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Illinois Institute of Technology is one of the top schools for Women's Volleyball, at #4. Based in Chicago, IL, Illinois Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $11,740 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $11,740 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign came in at #5 on this year's ranking for Women's Volleyball. Located in Champaign, IL, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 69% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $34,334 per participant, with expenses of about $145,720 per participant. The school awards about $25,398 in athletic aid per athlete.
Loyola University Chicago came in at #6 in this year's ranking. Based in Chicago, IL, Loyola University Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 994, and a 88% Graduation Success Rate. About 88% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $81,338 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $81,338 per participant. Athletic aid averages $23,325 per athlete.
Illinois State University ranked #7 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Located in Normal, IL, Illinois State University is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 80% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $61,402, compared with $61,402 spent per athlete. The school awards about $13,477 in athletic aid per athlete.
Bradley University ranked #8 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Peoria, IL. Bradley University records an NCAA APR of 1000, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. About 63% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $59,224 in revenue per athlete, compared with $59,224 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $16,583 per athlete.
Lewis University landed the #9 spot this year. Based in Romeoville, IL, Lewis University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $31,591, against $31,591 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $9,669.
North Central College came in at #10 in this year's ranking. Based in Naperville, IL, North Central College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,187, with expenses of about $6,113 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of Illinois Chicago did well this year, earning the #11 position. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Illinois Chicago is a public institution. University of Illinois Chicago records an NCAA APR of 1000, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 47%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $59,141, compared with $59,141 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $15,167.
Northern Illinois University landed the #12 spot this year. Based in Dekalb, IL, Northern Illinois University is a public institution. Northern Illinois University records an NCAA APR of 989, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 75%. The program generates about $68,973 in revenue per athlete, compared with $68,973 spent per athlete. The school awards about $16,138 in athletic aid per athlete.
DePaul University placed #13 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. Based in Chicago, IL, DePaul University is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 986, alongside a GSR of 86%. Its federal graduation rate is 82%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $89,018, compared with $89,018 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $23,928.
Lake Forest College ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Based in Lake Forest, IL, Lake Forest College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $5,565 per participant, with expenses of about $5,565 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Elmhurst University placed #15 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Elmhurst, IL. The program generates about $7,793 in revenue per athlete, compared with $7,793 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale landed the #16 spot this year. This public school is set in Carbondale, IL. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, alongside a GSR of 89%. The federal graduation rate stands at 45%. The program generates about $49,243 in revenue per athlete, compared with $49,243 spent per athlete. The school awards about $11,525 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Illinois Springfield did well this year, earning the #17 position. Based in Springfield, IL, University of Illinois Springfield is a public institution. Team revenue averages $20,085 per participant, against $20,085 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $4,768.
Eastern Illinois University did well this year, earning the #18 position. Located in Charleston, IL, Eastern Illinois University is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 989, alongside a GSR of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 100%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $30,348, against $30,348 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $7,653 per athlete.
Knox College ranked #19 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Knox College is a private not-for-profit school based in Galesburg, IL. The program generates about $5,207 in revenue per athlete, against $6,427 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville ranked #20 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Based in Edwardsville, IL, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 988, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 90%. Team revenue averages $34,228 per participant, against $34,228 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $8,334 per athlete.
McKendree University did well this year, earning the #21 position. Based in Lebanon, IL, McKendree University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $22,875 per participant, against $22,875 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $6,695 per athlete.
Western Illinois University came in at #22 in this year's ranking. Based in Macomb, IL, Western Illinois University is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 978, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. About 67% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $38,396 in revenue per athlete, against $38,396 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $10,303 per athlete.
Illinois College placed #23 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Jacksonville, IL. Team revenue averages $8,115 per participant, compared with $8,115 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Aurora University ranked #24 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Based in Aurora, IL, Aurora University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $7,748 per participant, with expenses of about $7,748 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
North Park University came in at #25 in this year's ranking. North Park University is a private not-for-profit school based in Chicago, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,547, compared with $7,547 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $32.
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
See our data sources and methodologies.