2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 6,199 people earned their degree in public policy, making the major the 116th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, public policy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $52,077 and had an average of $35,743 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 654 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $51,600 and $37,312 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 382 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $57,267 and $46,814 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in public policy. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent public policy programs, but they also cost less that 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 public policy program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Public Policy Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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.

Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k.

Top 5 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois

#1

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

#1 in overall quality

$61,548 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$73,823 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Chicago. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 337 degrees to qualified masters’s public policy students in 2019-2020.

UChicago did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Public Policy 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 UChicago are $61,548.

Full UChicago Public Policy Report

#2

University of Illinois at Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

#3 in overall quality

$27,036 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Chicago. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k list. UIC is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 2 masters’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

UIC also took the #3 spot in our “Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at UIC are $27,036, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full UIC Public Policy Report

#3

National Louis University

Chicago, Illinois

$12,096 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$52,107 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, National Louis University landed the #3 spot on the list. NLU is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 1 masters’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

NLU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #0 on our “Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at National Louis University are $12,096, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Public Policy at NLU

#4

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

#4 in overall quality

$19,760 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

$47,260 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, DePaul University landed the #4 spot on the list. This large school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 22 masters’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

DePaul did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at DePaul University are $19,760, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Public Policy at DePaul University

#5

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

#2 in overall quality

$19,154 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, Loyola University Chicago landed the #5 spot on the list. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 12 masters’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

Loyola Chicago did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Loyola University Chicago are $19,154, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full Loyola Chicago Public Policy Report

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy (Income $75-$110k) in the Great Lakes Region
• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy (Income $75-$110k)

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 The Official CTBTO Photostream.

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