by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2021-2022, 12,911 people earned their degree in journalism, making the major the 69th most popular in the United States. In , journalism graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $32,980 and had an average of $23,933 in loans still to pay off.
Across Illinois, there were 316 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,522 and $27,663 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 272 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,374 and $23,086 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois” ranking analyzed 19 colleges that offered a degree in journalism. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their journalism program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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 “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois”.
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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois”.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Columbia College Chicago. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 25 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Augustana College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Located in Rock Island, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 17 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois. SIUC is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 15 bachelors’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend DePaul University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. This large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 34 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Loyola University Chicago. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 29 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
North Central College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Naperville, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 4 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Bradley University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Peoria, Illinois, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Eastern Illinois University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #8. EIU is a medium-sized public school situated in Charleston, Illinois. It awarded 12 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Illinois State University ranked #9 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Illinois State is a large school located in Normal, Illinois that handed out 32 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Northern Illinois University landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking. NIU is located in Dekalb, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 19 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at Northern Illinois University
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #11. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 58 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #12, Dominican University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Dominican U is located in River Forest, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 4 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Lewis University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #13. This medium-sized school is located in Romeoville, Illinois, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Western Illinois University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Macomb, Illinois, and it awarded 1 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Journalism at Western Illinois University
Concordia University, Chicago came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking. Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized school located in River Forest, Illinois that handed out 0 bachelors’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #16, Knox College did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Galesburg, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 3 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Benedictine University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #16. Benedictine University is located in Lisle, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 0 bachelors’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Roosevelt University ranked #16 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s journalism degrees to 2 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Northwestern University ranked #16 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major in Illinois list. Located in Evanston, Illinois, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 0 degrees to qualified bachelors’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 99%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
