2025 Best History Schools in the Great Lakes Region
57
Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
3,683
History Degrees Awarded
$33,218
Avg Early-Career Salary
History is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #30 most popular major in the country. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 57 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for history students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,683 degrees in history annually.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great History School
Your choice of history 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 history schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
History Rankings by Degree Level
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 History Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision.
More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.
To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you.
Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Read more about College Factual's methodology.
Best Schools for History in the Great Lakes Region
Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the history degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
11 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in History
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a good option for students interested in a degree in history. Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #22 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.
There were about 132 history students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, history degree recipients generally make an average of $31,378 in the first five years of their career.
More information about a degree in history from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
It is hard to beat Northwestern University if you wish to pursue a degree in history. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.
There were about 86 history students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent data year. Those history students who get their degree from Northwestern University earn $16,943 more than the typical history student.
More information about a degree in history from Northwestern University
Bachelors
Degree Type
BA in History
Program Name
Gain a rich foundation of knowledge ranging from early history to modern times with this online bachelor's degree in history from Southern New Hampshire University.
More information about a degree in BA in History from Southern New Hampshire UniversityRelated Programs
It is difficult to beat University of Wisconsin - Madison if you want to pursue a degree in history. UW - Madison is a fairly large public university located in the city of Madison. A Best Colleges rank of #40 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.
There were about 188 history students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent data year. History degree recipients from University of Wisconsin - Madison receive an earnings boost of about $2,741 over the typical earnings of history majors.
More information about a degree in history from University of Wisconsin - Madison
University of Notre Dame is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in history. Notre Dame is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Notre Dame. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Notre Dame is a great university overall.
There were approximately 66 history students who graduated with this degree at Notre Dame in the most recent data year. History degree recipients from University of Notre Dame receive an earnings boost of approximately $6,304 above the typical earnings of history majors.
More information about a degree in history from University of Notre Dame
Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #70 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Ohio State is a great university overall.
There were about 131 history students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the history program report average early career earnings of $26,663.
More information about a degree in history from Ohio State University - Main Campus
UIUC is a very large public university located in the city of Champaign. A Best Colleges rank of #41 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.
There were approximately 118 history students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, history degree recipients usually earn about $26,436 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a degree in history from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Located in the city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means IU Bloomington is a great university overall.
There were roughly 65 history students who graduated with this degree at IU Bloomington in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, history degree recipients typically make an average of $31,880 in their early careers.
More information about a degree in history from Indiana University - Bloomington
Masters
Degree Type
MA in History
Program Name
The online Master of Arts in History degree program can deepen your understanding of how history is made.
More information about a degree in MA in History from Southern New Hampshire UniversityRelated Programs
Loyola Chicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #100 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Loyola Chicago is a great university overall.
There were approximately 77 history students who graduated with this degree at Loyola Chicago in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the history program make an average of $31,079 in their early career salary.
More information about a degree in history from Loyola University Chicago
Michigan State is a very large public university located in the small city of East Lansing. A Best Colleges rank of #54 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.
There were about 65 history students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the history program state that they receive average early career earnings of $32,434.
More information about a degree in history from Michigan State University
Marquette is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Milwaukee. A Best Colleges rank of #114 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Marquette is a great university overall.
There were roughly 44 history students who graduated with this degree at Marquette in the most recent data year. Those history students who get their degree from Marquette University receive $3,689 more than the standard history grad.
More information about a degree in history from Marquette University
