Ranked #32 in popularity,
instructional media design is one of the most sought-after master's degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.
In 2025, College Factual analyzed 5 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Instructional Media Design Master's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 123 master's degrees in instructional media design to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Your choice of instructional media design for getting your master's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality instructional media program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:
Quality Overall Is Important
The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we include a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
Average Earnings
To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their master's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their master's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
Other Factors We Consider
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
- Major Focus - How much a school focuses on instructional media design students vs. other majors.
- Major Demand - The number of instructional media design students who choose to seek a master's degree at the school.
- Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
- Student Debt - How much debt instructional media design students go into to obtain their master's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized instructional media design related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for instructional media design students working on their master's degree.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Instructional Media Design Master's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
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Featured Instructional Media Design Programs
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in instructional media design.
It's difficult to beat Concordia University, Chicago if you want to pursue a master's degree in instructional media design. Located in the large suburb of River Forest, Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.
Those instructional media design students who get their master's degree from Concordia University, Chicago make $3,014 more than the average instructional media graduate.
More information about a master’s in instructional media design from Concordia University, Chicago
Northern Illinois University is a good choice for students interested in a master's degree in instructional media design. Located in the small suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public university with a fairly large student population.
Instructional Media Design master's degree recipients from Northern Illinois University earn a boost of around $3,321 above the average income of instructional media design majors.
More information about a master’s in instructional media design from Northern Illinois University
It is hard to beat Aurora University if you want to pursue a master's degree in instructional media design. Aurora is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Aurora.
Master's graduates who receive their degree from the instructional media program earn about $63,938 in the first couple years of their career.
More information about a master’s in instructional media design from Aurora University
Any student pursuing a degree in a master's degree in instructional media design needs to take a look at Western Illinois University. Located in the remote town of Macomb, WIU is a public university with a medium-sized student population.
Students who graduate with their master's from the instructional media program report average early career income of $60,911.
More information about a master’s in instructional media design from Western Illinois University
SIUE is a large public university located in the suburb of Edwardsville.More information about a master’s in instructional media design from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
