by our College Data Analytics TeamFor its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 97 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for social sciences students pursuing a bachelor's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 16,644 bachelor's degrees in social sciences during the 2022-2023 academic year.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology
The social sciences bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality social sciences program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
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.
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.
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for social sciences students working on their bachelor's degree.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Social Sciences Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region 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.
Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for social sciences students seeking a a bachelor's degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in social sciences needs to look into University of Chicago. Located in the large city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Chicago
It is hard to beat Northwestern University if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in social sciences. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Northwestern University
It's hard to beat University of Notre Dame if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in social sciences. Located in the large suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Notre Dame
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in social sciences. U-M is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Wisconsin - Madison
Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Michigan State University
Ohio State is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Columbus.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Ohio State University - Main Campus
Purdue is a very large public university located in the small city of West Lafayette.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Purdue University - Main Campus
IU Bloomington is a very large public university located in the small city of Bloomington.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Indiana University - Bloomington
Miami University - Oxford is a fairly large public university located in the fringe town of Oxford.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Miami University - Oxford
Located in the city of Milwaukee, Marquette is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Marquette University
Denison is a small private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Granville.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Denison University
Located in the large city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Loyola University Chicago
Xavier is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Cincinnati.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Xavier University
DePauw is a small private not-for-profit university located in the distant town of Greencastle.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from DePauw University
Case Western is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Cleveland.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Case Western Reserve University
Located in the rural area of Gambier, Kenyon is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from Kenyon College
UIC is a very large public university located in the city of Chicago.More information about a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of Illinois at Chicago
Here are some additional great schools for Social Sciences students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Best Social Sciences Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Southern Illinois University Carbondale | Carbondale, IL |
| 21 | University of Cincinnati - Main Campus | Cincinnati, OH |
| 22 | DePaul University | Chicago, IL |
| 23 | Ohio University - Athens Campus | Athens, OH |
| 24 | Illinois State University | Normal, IL |
| 25 | Northern Illinois University | Dekalb, IL |
| 26 | Wheaton College Illinois | Wheaton, IL |
| 27 | Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, MI |
| 28 | Indiana State University | Terre Haute, IN |
| 29 | Western Michigan University | Kalamazoo, MI |
| 30 | Oberlin College | Oberlin, OH |
| 31 | Lake Forest College | Lake Forest, IL |
| 32 | Kent State University at Kent | Kent, OH |
Explore the best social sciences schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Economics | 5,259 |
| Political Science & Government | 5,015 |
| Sociology | 2,344 |
| Anthropology | 971 |
| International Relations & National Security | 810 |
| Geography & Cartography | 487 |
| General Social Sciences | 420 |
| Sociology & Anthropology | 93 |
| Other Social Sciences | 93 |
| Urban Studies | 78 |
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Communication & Journalism | 11,839 |
| English Language & Literature | 4,365 |
| Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities | 3,835 |
| Foreign Languages & Linguistics | 3,279 |
| History | 2,881 |
| Family, Consumer & Human Sciences | 2,008 |
| Philosophy & Religious Studies | 1,404 |
| Theology & Religious Vocations | 1,334 |
| Area, Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies | 993 |
