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2022 Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

6 Ranked Colleges
38 Degrees Awarded
$16,300 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Geography Schools for a Master's in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

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 “Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 8,936 people earned their degree in geography and cartography, making the major the 107th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, geography and cartography graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $36,126 and had an average of $23,577 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 242 geography and cartography graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,000 and $19,500 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 38 geography and cartography graduates with average earnings and debt of $57,267 and $46,814 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 6 colleges that offer a degree in geography and cartography. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality geography and cartography programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the geography and cartography program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Geography & Cartography Schools

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 “Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid”.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid.

Top 6 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Geography & Cartography in Illinois (With Aid)

#1 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #1 spot on the list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large school located in Champaign, Illinois that handed out 14 masters’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC also made our “Best Geography & Cartography Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #1. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UIUC are $30,083.

Read more about Geography & Cartography at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

#2 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. SIUE is a fairly large public school situated in Edwardsville, Illinois. It awarded 6 masters’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUE also took the #2 spot in our “Best Geography & Cartography Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville are $9,300, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Geography & Cartography at SIUE

#3

Eastern Illinois University

Charleston, Illinois
#4 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern Illinois University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Eastern Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Charleston, Illinois. It awarded 6 masters’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at EIU, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Geography & Cartography Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at EIU are $20,761, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at EIU

#4

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois
#3 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 #4 for the Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. Northern Illinois University is a public institution located in Dekalb, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois master’s degree geography students with aid list, NIU has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Geography & Cartography Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at NIU are $11,086, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Geography & Cartography at Northern Illinois University

#5

Chicago State University

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Chicago State University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid. This small school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 2 masters’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

CSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #0 on our “Best Geography & Cartography Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Chicago State University are $15,056.

Full CSU Geography & Cartography Report

#6

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois
#5 in overall quality

With a ranking of #6, Western Illinois University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geography Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Getting Aid list. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized school located in Macomb, Illinois that handed out 6 masters’s geography degrees in 2019-2020.

WIU also made our “Best Geography & Cartography Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #5. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at WIU are $11,996.

Read more about Geography & Cartography at WIU

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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.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Couleur.

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