2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 941 people earned their degree in engineering and applied physics, making the major the 440th most popular in the United States.

Across Illinois, there were 97 engineering and applied physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 94 engineering and applied physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,319 and $24,183 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in engineering and applied physics. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent engineering and applied physics programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the engineering and applied physics program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 3 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

#1

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, Illinois

#1 in overall quality

$5,477 Average Net Price

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #1 spot on the list. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s applied physics degrees to 77 students in 2019-2020.

UIUC also took the #1 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $5,477 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low 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%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at UIUC

#2

University of Illinois at Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

#3 in overall quality

$10,648 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Chicago. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. UIC is a large public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 3 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k list, UIC has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $10,648 for Illinois Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Illinois at Chicago.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at UIC

#3

Illinois Institute of Technology

Chicago, Illinois

#2 in overall quality

$17,222 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois Institute of Technology. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s applied physics degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k list, Illinois Tech has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $17,222 for illinois bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Illinois Institute of Technology.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at Illinois Institute of Technology

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $0-$30k) in the Great Lakes Region
• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $0-$30k)

Notes and References

References

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to NASA.

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