College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2023 Most Popular Colleges for Child Development & Psychology in the Great Lakes Region

35 Ranked Colleges
2,522 Degrees Awarded
$32,500 Avg Cost*
Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2020-2021, 17,542 people earned their degree in child development and psychology, making the major the 57th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, child development and psychology graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $34,186 and had an average of $22,623 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 2,522 child development and psychology graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,180 and $21,143 respectively.

This year’s “Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking looked at 35 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in child development and psychology. To top this list, a school must have a successful child development and psychology program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.

Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Degree Other Award Levels
Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Child Development Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region child development students.

1

Out of the 35 schools in the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #1 spot on the list. U-M is a large school located in Ann Arbor, Michigan that handed out 749 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full U-M Child Development & Psychology Report

2

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. UIUC is a large school located in Champaign, Illinois that handed out 622 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Child Development & Psychology Report

3

Out of the 35 schools in the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Indiana University - Bloomington landed the #3 spot on the list. Indiana University - Bloomington is a large school located in Bloomington, Indiana that handed out 326 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at Indiana University - Bloomington

4
Purdue crest
Purdue University - Main Campus
West Lafayette, Indiana

Out of the 35 schools in the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in West Lafayette, Indiana, this large public school handed out 272 degrees to qualified ’s child development students in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Purdue University - Main Campus

5
UChicago crest
University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #5 for the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 122 degrees to qualified ’s child development students in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.0% 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 Child Development & Psychology at UChicago

6

Ohio State University - Main Campus came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ohio State is a public institution located in Columbus, Ohio. The school has a large population, and it awarded 49 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Ohio State University - Main Campus

7
PFW crest
Purdue University Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne, Indiana

With a ranking of #7, Purdue University Fort Wayne did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Fort Wayne, Indiana is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s child development degrees to 52 students in 2020-2021.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at PFW

8
Lake Forest crest
Lake Forest College
Lake Forest, Illinois

Lake Forest College did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #8. Lake Forest, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s child development degrees to 46 students in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Lake Forest Child Development & Psychology Report

9
Denison crest
Denison University
Granville, Ohio

Denison University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Denison is a private not-for-profit institution located in Granville, Ohio. The school has a small population, and it awarded 34 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full Denison University Child Development & Psychology Report

10
Albion crest
Albion College
Albion, Michigan

Albion College did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #10. Albion College is a small school located in Albion, Michigan that handed out 26 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Albion

11
Notre Dame crest
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, Indiana

University of Notre Dame did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #11. University of Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit institution located in Notre Dame, Indiana. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 23 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at University of Notre Dame

12
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

Northwestern University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #12. Located in Evanston, Illinois, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 22 diplomas to qualified ’s child development students in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Northwestern University

13
Ball State crest
Ball State University
Muncie, Indiana

Ball State University landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ball State is a public institution located in Muncie, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 24 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Ball State University Child Development & Psychology Report

14
Knox crest
Knox College
Galesburg, Illinois

Knox College came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Galesburg, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s child development degrees to 19 students in 2020-2021.

The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at Knox

15

With a ranking of #15, Kent State University at Kent did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Kent State is a public institution located in Kent, Ohio. The school has a large population, and it awarded 15 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at Kent State University at Kent

16
Wabash crest
Wabash College
Crawfordsville, Indiana

Wabash College did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #16. This small school is located in Crawfordsville, Indiana, and it awarded 14 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at Wabash College

17

Illinois Institute of Technology ranked #17 on this year’s Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s child development degrees to 13 students in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Full Illinois Tech Child Development & Psychology Report

18

University of Wisconsin - Madison ranked #18 on this year’s Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Madison, Wisconsin is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s child development degrees to 11 students in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at University of Wisconsin - Madison

19
Cornerstone crest
Cornerstone University
Grand Rapids, Michigan

Cornerstone University landed the #19 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This small school is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and it awarded 9 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at Cornerstone

20
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #20. DePaul University is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 7 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at DePaul

20

With a ranking of #20, Ohio University - Athens Campus did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Athens, Ohio, this large public school awarded 7 degrees to qualified ’s child development students in 2020-2021.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Ohio University - Athens Campus

22
Loyola Chicago crest
Loyola University Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

Loyola University Chicago ranked #22 on this year’s Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 6 degrees to qualified ’s child development students in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Child Development & Psychology at Loyola University Chicago

23
Central Michigan crest
Central Michigan University
Mount Pleasant, Michigan

With a ranking of #23, Central Michigan University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. This fairly large school is located in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, and it awarded 5 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Central Michigan University

24
WMU crest
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo, Michigan

With a ranking of #24, Western Michigan University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. This fairly large school is located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and it awarded 2 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at Western Michigan University

24

University of Michigan - Flint ranked #24 on this year’s Most Well Attended Child Development Major in the Great Lakes Region list. UM Flint is a medium-sized public school situated in Flint, Michigan. It awarded 2 ’s child development degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Child Development & Psychology at University of Michigan - Flint

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options