by our College Data Analytics TeamFor its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 140 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for education students pursuing a bachelor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 16,221 bachelor's degrees in education to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Your choice of education for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality education program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we include a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a collection of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for education students working on their bachelor's degree.
When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.
The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in education. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in education needs to take a look at Indiana University - Bloomington. Located in the small city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Indiana University - Bloomington
Ball State University is a good option for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in education. Located in the city of Muncie, Ball State is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Ball State University
It is difficult to beat Illinois State University if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in education. Illinois State is a very large public university located in the midsize suburb of Normal.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Illinois State University
Miami University - Oxford is a good decision for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in education. Located in the fringe town of Oxford, Miami University - Oxford is a public university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Miami University - Oxford
Located in the city of Dayton, UDayton is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from University of Dayton
UIUC is a very large public university located in the city of Champaign.More information about a bachelor’s in education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Purdue University - Main Campus
Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Ohio State University - Main Campus
Michigan State is a very large public university located in the small city of East Lansing.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Michigan State University
GVSU is a fairly large public university located in the town of Allendale.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Grand Valley State University
WMU is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Kalamazoo.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Western Michigan University
Loyola Chicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Loyola University Chicago
Located in the large city of Cincinnati, UC is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Located in the town of Mount Pleasant, Central Michigan is a public university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Central Michigan University
Located in the large suburb of Ypsilanti, Eastern Michigan is a public university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Eastern Michigan University
Located in the large suburb of Kent, Kent State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Kent State University at Kent
Located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Located in the suburb of River Forest, Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Concordia University, Chicago
NLU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago.More information about a bachelor’s in education from National Louis University
DePaul is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a bachelor’s in education from DePaul University
Located in the distant town of Athens, OHIO Athens is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Ohio University - Athens Campus
Located in the fringe town of Bowling Green, BGSU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Bowling Green State University - Main Campus
Bradley is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Peoria.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Bradley University
UW - Madison is a very large public university located in the city of Madison.More information about a bachelor’s in education from University of Wisconsin - Madison
Located in the suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in education from Northern Illinois University
Here are some additional great schools for Education students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Best Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 29 | Butler University | Indianapolis, IN |
| 30 | Oakland University | Rochester Hills, MI |
| 31 | University of Toledo | Toledo, OH |
| 32 | Saginaw Valley State University | University Center, MI |
| 33 | University of Illinois at Chicago | Chicago, IL |
| 34 | Ashland University | Ashland, OH |
| 35 | Marquette University | Milwaukee, WI |
| 36 | Augustana College | Rock Island, IL |
| 37 | Northeastern Illinois University | Chicago, IL |
| 38 | University of Wisconsin - Green Bay | Green Bay, WI |
| 39 | Wheaton College Illinois | Wheaton, IL |
| 40 | University of Wisconsin - River Falls | River Falls, WI |
| 41 | Aurora University | Aurora, IL |
| 42 | University of Wisconsin - Whitewater | Whitewater, WI |
| 43 | Calvin University | Grand Rapids, MI |
| 44 | Hope College | Holland, MI |
| 45 | University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee | Milwaukee, WI |
| 46 | Wright State University - Main Campus | Dayton, OH |
Explore the best education schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 8,360 |
| Teacher Education Subject Specific | 3,921 |
| Special Education | 2,070 |
| General Education | 1,205 |
| Educational Administration | 349 |
| Other Education | 195 |
| Teaching English or French | 46 |
| Education Philosophy | 38 |
| Curriculum & Instruction | 17 |
| Multilingual Education | 8 |
