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2025 Best Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois

7 Colleges in Illinois
707 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded
$71,769 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in civil engineering is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #50 out of 395 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual reviewed 7 schools in Illinois to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of civil engineering. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 707 degrees in civil engineering annually.

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

Choosing a Great Civil Engineering School

Best Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois Your choice of civil engineering school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for civil engineering schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

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

Civil Engineering Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Civil Eng
Master's Degrees in Civil Eng
Doctor's Degrees in Civil Eng

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

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.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Civil Engineering in Illinois

The schools below may not offer all types of civil eng degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

Top Illinois Schools in Civil Eng

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In IL
60 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded

It's difficult to beat Northwestern University if you wish to pursue a degree in civil engineering. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.

There were about 60 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from Northwestern University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
313 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded
$75,527 Median Starting Salary

Any student who is interested in civil engineering needs to look into University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 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 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.

There were about 313 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the civil engineering program at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign earn $3,759 above the average graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
51 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded
13.7% Growth in Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in civil engineering has to look into Illinois Institute of Technology. Located in the city of Chicago, Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population. This school ranks 23rd out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 51 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at Illinois Tech in the most recent year we have data available. Civil Engineering degree recipients from Illinois Institute of Technology receive an earnings boost of approximately $3,247 above the typical income of civil engineering majors.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
149 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded
10.7% Growth in Graduates

University of Illinois at Chicago is a great option for students interested in a degree in civil engineering. UIC is a very large public university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #254 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UIC is a great university overall.

There were approximately 149 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the civil eng program report average early career wages of $71,562.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from University of Illinois at Chicago

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
37 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded
$72,573 Median Starting Salary

Located in the medium-sized city of Peoria, Bradley is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 19th out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 37 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at Bradley in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the civil eng program state that they receive average early career wages of $72,573.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from Bradley University

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
62 Civil Eng Degrees Awarded
$67,260 Median Starting Salary

Located in the suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 31st out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were roughly 62 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at SIUE in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the civil eng program earn around $67,260 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$65,269 Median Starting Salary

SIUC is a fairly large public university located in the distant town of Carbondale. This university ranks 36th out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 30 civil engineering students who graduated with this degree at SIUC in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the civil eng program earn about $65,269 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in civil engineering from Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Best Civil Engineering Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Civil Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 322 438
Ohio 314 746
Indiana 294 487
Wisconsin 273 410

View All Rankings >

One of 41 majors within the Engineering area of study, Civil Engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.

Civil Eng Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Civil Engineering 688
Structural Engineering 14
Civil Engineering 4
Trasportation Engineering 1

View All Civil Eng Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Mechanical Engineering 1,248
Electrical Engineering 815
Computer Engineering 639
Chemical Engineering 449
General Engineering 435
Biomedical Engineering 409
Industrial Engineering 365
Materials Engineering 214
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering 196
Agricultural Engineering 142

View All Civil Eng Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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