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2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

7 Ranked Colleges
80 Degrees Awarded
$35,700 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Physics is the 67th most popular major in the country with 14,123 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, physics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $42,475 and had an average of $22,421 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 492 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,100 and $21,278 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 80 physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,900 and $148,219 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 7 colleges that offer a degree in physics. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality physics programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the physics program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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 Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 7 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Physics (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

#1

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois
#2 in overall quality

Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the #1 spot on the list. Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Evanston, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 5 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Northwestern also made our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #2. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Northwestern are $56,567.

Full Northwestern University Physics Report

#2

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 23 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s physics students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois doctor’s degree physics students whose families make $0-$30k list, UChicago has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UChicago are $61,548.

Read full report on Physics at UChicago

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 39 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC also took the #3 spot in our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UIUC are $30,083.

Read full report on Physics at UIUC

#5 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. University of Illinois at Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 3 doctorate’s physics degrees to qualified students.

UIC also took the #5 spot in our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Illinois at Chicago are $27,036, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Physics at UIC

#5

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois
#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northern Illinois University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k. This fairly large school is located in Dekalb, Illinois, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

NIU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Northern Illinois University are $11,086, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full NIU Physics Report

#6 in overall quality

Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Carbondale, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s physics degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.

SIUC also made our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #6. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at SIUC are $32,928.

Read more about Physics at SIUC

#4 in overall quality

Illinois Institute of Technology landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Physics Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Illinois Institute of Technology is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 4 doctorate’s physics degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Illinois Tech, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Physics Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Illinois Institute of Technology are $30,695.

Read more about Physics at Illinois Institute of Technology

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.

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