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2025 Best General Journalism Schools in the Great Lakes Region

28 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
1,450 Journalism Degrees Awarded
If you pursue a degree in general journalism, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #69 most popular program in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 28 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best General Journalism Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 1,450 degrees in general journalism to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great General Journalism School

Best General Journalism Schools in the Great Lakes Region The journalism program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for General Journalism rankings. We derive our Best Overall General Journalism School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your General Journalism Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Journalism
Master's Degrees in Journalism
Doctor's Degrees in Journalism

The journalism school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best General Journalism Schools in the Great Lakes Region. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for General Journalism in the Great Lakes Region

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the journalism degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in Journalism

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In WI
200 Journalism Degrees Awarded

University of Wisconsin - Madison is a wonderful decision for students pursuing a degree in general journalism. Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #40 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.

There were about 200 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from University of Wisconsin - Madison

2
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MI
106 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Michigan State University is a good decision for students interested in a degree in general journalism. Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #54 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 106 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Michigan State University

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IN
121 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Indiana University - Bloomington is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in general journalism. IU Bloomington is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Bloomington. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means IU Bloomington is a great university overall.

There were roughly 121 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at IU Bloomington in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Indiana University - Bloomington

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In OH
140 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Ohio University - Athens Campus is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in general journalism. OHIO Athens is a fairly large public university located in the town of Athens. A Best Colleges rank of #184 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means OHIO Athens is a great university overall.

There were approximately 140 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at OHIO Athens in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Ohio University - Athens Campus

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IL
70 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #41 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.

There were about 70 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general journalism from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IN
92 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Ball State is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Muncie. A Best Colleges rank of #181 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Ball State is a great university overall.

There were about 92 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at Ball State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Ball State University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In OH
59 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Kent State is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Kent. This university ranks 9th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were roughly 59 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at Kent State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Kent State University at Kent

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In OH

Ohio State is a very large public university located in the city of Columbus. A Best Colleges rank of #70 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Ohio State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 28 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Ohio State University - Main Campus

9
Marquette crest
Marquette University
Milwaukee, WI
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In WI

Located in the large city of Milwaukee, Marquette is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #114 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Marquette is a great university overall.

There were roughly 25 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at Marquette in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Marquette University

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In OH
40 Journalism Degrees Awarded

Miami University - Oxford is a fairly large public university located in the town of Oxford. A Best Colleges rank of #134 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Miami University - Oxford is a great university overall.

There were approximately 40 general journalism students who graduated with this degree at Miami University - Oxford in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general journalism from Miami University - Oxford

Best General Journalism Colleges by State

Explore the best general journalism schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Ohio 939 367
Michigan 915 226
Illinois 870 317
Indiana 737 268
Wisconsin 672 325

View All Rankings >

One of 6 majors within the Journalism area of study, General Journalism has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Other Journalism 37
Photojournalism 36
Broadcast Journalism 20

View All Journalism Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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