by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.
Education is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 4th of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 327,871 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2019-2020, education graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $46,202 and had an average of $24,437 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Great Lakes region, there were 45,404 education graduates with average earnings and debt of $43,621 and $25,804 respectively.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking analyzed 342 colleges that offered a degree in education. To top this list, a school must have a successful education program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region”.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend American College of Education. The school came in at #1 for the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region. American College of Education is a private for-profit institution located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 3,997 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out of the 342 schools in the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Ball State University landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Muncie, Indiana, this large public school handed out 2,554 degrees to qualified ’s education students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.2% 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%.
Out of the 342 schools in the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, National Louis University landed the #3 spot on the list. NLU is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,158 ’s education degrees to qualified students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Concordia University, Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region. River Forest, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s education degrees to 987 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Illinois State University. The school came in at #5 for the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region. Normal, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s education degrees to 956 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Kent State University at Kent came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Kent State University at Kent is a large school located in Kent, Ohio that handed out 802 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #7, Michigan State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Michigan State University is a large public school situated in East Lansing, Michigan. It awarded 767 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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%.
Bowling Green State University - Main Campus landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Bowling Green State University - Main Campus is a fairly large school located in Bowling Green, Ohio that handed out 864 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Education at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus
Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #9. Ohio State is a large public school situated in Columbus, Ohio. It awarded 674 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% 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%.
Ohio University - Athens Campus ranked #10 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Athens, Ohio is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s education degrees to 644 students in 2020-2021.
Northern Illinois University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #11. NIU is a fairly large public school situated in Dekalb, Illinois. It awarded 630 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Education at Northern Illinois University
Grand Valley State University landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. GVSU is a large school located in Allendale, Michigan that handed out 597 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% 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 Education at Grand Valley State University
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 567 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Indiana University - Bloomington ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Indiana University - Bloomington is a large school located in Bloomington, Indiana that handed out 608 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Central Michigan University landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Central Michigan University is located in Mount Pleasant, Michigan and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 559 ’s education degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Miami University - Oxford landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Oxford, Ohio, this fairly large public school handed out 554 degrees to qualified ’s education students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Purdue University - Main Campus came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Purdue is a large school located in West Lafayette, Indiana that handed out 653 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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.
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This large school is located in Cincinnati, Ohio, and it awarded 708 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Education at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Eastern Michigan University ranked #19 on this year’s Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Eastern Michigan is a fairly large public school situated in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It awarded 561 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #20, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Wisconsin - Whitewater is a fairly large school located in Whitewater, Wisconsin that handed out 503 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Education at University of Wisconsin - Whitewater
University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Madison, Wisconsin is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s education degrees to 613 students in 2020-2021.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.
DePaul University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #22. This large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 452 ’s education degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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 ranking of #23, Western Michigan University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. WMU is a public institution located in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 456 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #24, Ivy Tech Community College did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, this large public school handed out 1,035 diplomas to qualified ’s education students in 2020-2021.
Wayne State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Education Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #25. Wayne State University is a public institution located in Detroit, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 488 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
While not in the ’top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | University of Akron Main Campus | Akron, OH |
| 52 | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor, MI |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
