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2025 Best Health & Physical Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois

20 Colleges in Illinois
1,324 Bachelor's Degrees
$30,800 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #9 in popularity, health & physical education is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 20 schools in Illinois to determine which ones were the best for health & physical education students pursuing a bachelor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 1,324 bachelor's degrees in health & physical education to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Health & Physical Education School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Health & Physical Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois Your choice of health & physical education for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality phys ed program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Early-Career Earnings

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.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for health & physical education students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Health & Physical Education Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Health & Physical Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois 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. 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.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Health & Physical Education in Illinois

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in health & physical education.

10 Top Illinois Schools for a Bachelor's in Phys Ed

1
176 Annual Graduates
$31,187 Median Starting Salary
$39,899 Median Student Debt

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a wonderful choice for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in health & physical education. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the phys ed program make about $31,187 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

2

It's hard to beat Concordia University, Chicago if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in health & physical education. Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of River Forest.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program state that they receive average early career earnings of $29,231.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Concordia University, Chicago

3
145 Annual Graduates
$28,874 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

University of Illinois at Chicago is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in health & physical education. UIC is a very large public university located in the city of Chicago.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the phys ed program make around $28,874 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from University of Illinois at Chicago

4
North Central crest
North Central College
Naperville, IL
50 Annual Graduates
$34,609 Median Starting Salary
$38,231 Median Student Debt

North Central College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in health & physical education. Located in the city of Naperville, North Central is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Those health & physical education students who get their bachelor's degree from North Central College receive $3,809 more than the typical phys ed student.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from North Central College

5
77 Annual Graduates
$30,051 Median Starting Salary
$32,500 Median Student Debt

Located in the suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public university with a very large student population.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the phys ed program earn about $30,051 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Illinois State University

6
84 Annual Graduates
$32,158 Median Starting Salary
$17,954 Median Student Debt

NIU is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Dekalb.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program state that they receive average early career earnings of $32,158.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Northern Illinois University

7
Aurora crest
Aurora University
Aurora, IL
52 Annual Graduates
$37,256 Median Starting Salary
$21,660 Median Student Debt

Located in the large suburb of Aurora, Aurora is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.

Those health & physical education students who get their bachelor's degree from Aurora University receive $6,456 more than the typical phys ed student.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Aurora University

8
73 Annual Graduates
$34,511 Median Starting Salary
$18,912 Median Student Debt

EIU is a medium-sized public university located in the town of Charleston.

Bachelor's recipients from the health & physical education major at Eastern Illinois University make $3,711 above the standard college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Eastern Illinois University

9

WIU is a moderately-sized public university located in the town of Macomb.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the phys ed program state that they receive average early career wages of $28,315.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Western Illinois University

10
39 Annual Graduates
$29,258 Median Starting Salary
$22,208 Median Student Debt

SIUC is a large public university located in the distant town of Carbondale.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the phys ed program earn an average of $29,258 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in health & physical education from Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Best Health & Physical Education Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Health & Physical Education Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 261 1,946
Ohio 252 1,932
Indiana 235 1,387
Wisconsin 213 836

View All Rankings >

Health & Physical Education is one of 4 different types of Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies programs to choose from.

Phys Ed Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Exercise Science and Kinesiology 980
Sports Management 233
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness General 98
Outdoor Health & Physical Education/Fitness 13

Majors Similar to Phys Ed

Related Major Annual Graduates
Recreation Administration 121
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies 91
Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies 1

Notes and References

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