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2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois

15 Ranked Colleges
97 Degrees Awarded
$27,500 Avg Cost*
Schools for a Bachelor's Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2021-2022, 4,439 people earned their degree in geography, making the major the 159th most popular in the United States.

Across Illinois, there were 121 geography graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 97 geography graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,374 and $23,086 respectively.

This year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois” ranking looked at 15 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in geography. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their geography program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.

Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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The geography school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois”.

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. 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.

Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois

The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois”.

Top 15 Most Focused Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Geography in Illinois

1
Augustana crest
Augustana College
Rock Island, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Augustana College. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois list. Augustana College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Rock Island, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s degrees in 2021-2022.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geography at Augustana

2

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois list. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, this fairly large public school awarded 23 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2021-2022.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geography at SIUE

3

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois list. Illinois State is a large school located in Normal, Illinois that handed out 14 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2021-2022.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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%.

Full Illinois State University Geography Report

4
EIU crest
Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, Illinois

Out of the 15 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Eastern Illinois University landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Charleston, Illinois, this medium-sized public school handed out 6 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2021-2022.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geography at EIU

5
Elmhurst crest
Elmhurst University
Elmhurst, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Elmhurst University. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois. Elmhurst is a private not-for-profit institution located in Elmhurst, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 1 bachelors’s degrees in 2021-2022.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.2% 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%.

Full Elmhurst Geography Report

6

With a ranking of #6, Northern Illinois University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois list. Dekalb, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 13 students in 2021-2022.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.1% 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 Geography at NIU

7
UChicago crest
University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

University of Chicago ranked #7 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2021-2022.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 99%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full UChicago Geography Report

8
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois

DePaul University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking. DePaul is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 9 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2021-2022.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full DePaul University Geography Report

9

Northeastern Illinois University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking. Northeastern Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 5 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2021-2022.

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%.

Full Northeastern Illinois University Geography Report

10
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

Northwestern University landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking. Northwestern University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 1 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2021-2022.

Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 99%.

Read more about Geography at Northwestern University

11
Olivet Nazarene crest
Olivet Nazarene University
Bourbonnais, Illinois

Olivet Nazarene University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #11. This small school is located in Bourbonnais, Illinois, and it awarded 0 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2021-2022.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geography at Olivet Nazarene University

12

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking. UIUC is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s degrees in 2021-2022.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. 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%.

Full UIUC Geography Report

13
Concordia University, Chicago crest
Concordia University, Chicago
River Forest, Illinois

Concordia University, Chicago came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking. River Forest, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 0 students in 2021-2022.

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%.

Read more about Geography at Concordia University, Chicago

13

Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #13 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois list. Located in Carbondale, Illinois, this fairly large public school handed out 0 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2021-2022.

The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The low undergrad 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%.

Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Geography Report

13
CSU crest
Chicago State University
Chicago, Illinois

Chicago State University landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in Illinois ranking. CSU is a small public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 4 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2021-2022.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full Chicago State University Geography Report

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