by our College Data Analytics TeamThere are lots of options to choose from today when trying to decide which school to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking is part of that endeavor. Due to the amount of income-based financial aid available, many 'high-priced' schools are more affordable than you think.
In This Year's Value Report:
We analyzed 36 schools across Illinois to determine which have the best value Master's Degree programs. Our ranking for the best value schools is based on objective factors. We steer clear of subjective measures since they don't give a clear picture when determining how one school compares to another. More specifically, the following explains what we consider and why.
When determining the value of a school in our Best Master's Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking, we first look at its average net price of a student coming from a family that makes $75-$110k a year. The net price is defined as the sum of room and board, tuition, and fees minus any financial aid that the student receives. In addition, the overall quality of a school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how much it costs.
To make it into this list a school must offer a quality education like the schools in our Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considers factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
To learn more, visit our best value ranking methodology page.
You can scroll down to see the top schools for this ranking, but you may also want to view some of the other ranking methods listed below.
Know what field you want to major in? Make sure you check out our best value schools by major. In addition, you can select one of the links below to see the best value colleges for other degree levels.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
University of Chicago tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $75-$110k) school for master’s degrees in Illinois for overall quality. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Chicago is ranked #1 for quality in the state of Illinois.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #2 on our 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Located in Evanston, Illinois, the school is a large private not-for-profit institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Northwestern University is ranked #2 for quality in the state of Illinois.
The quality degree programs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large public school located in Champaign, Illinois.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is ranked #3 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Value Report
A rank of #4 on our Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list means University of Illinois at Chicago is a great place for students working on their degree. UIC is located in Chicago, Illinois and has a large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is University of Illinois at Chicago a great value, but it is also ranked #12 in Illinois for overall quality.
Out of the 36 master’s degree schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Concordia University, Chicago landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in River Forest, Illinois, the school is a medium-sized private not-for-profit institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Concordia University, Chicago is ranked #5 for quality in the state of Illinois.
University of St Francis came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking. University of Saint Francis is located in Joliet, Illinois and has a small student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Not only is University of St Francis a great value, but it is also ranked #16 in Illinois for overall quality.
Governors State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking. Governors State University is a small public school located in University Park, Illinois.
Governors State University has the honor of being ranked #34 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
National Louis University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the school is a medium-sized private not-for-profit institution.
National Louis University has the honor of being ranked #13 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Aurora University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking. Aurora is a private not-for-profit institution located in Aurora, Illinois.
Aurora University has the honor of being ranked #8 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Western Illinois University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. WIU is located in Macomb, Illinois and has a medium-sized student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Western Illinois University a great value, but it is also ranked #28 in Illinois for overall quality.
With a ranking of #11, Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. SIUC is a fairly large public school situated in Carbondale, Illinois.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale has the honor of being ranked #19 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Read full value report on Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Illinois Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking, coming in at #12. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Illinois Institute of Technology is ranked #7 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Northern Illinois University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Located in Dekalb, Illinois, the school is a fairly large public institution.
Northern Illinois University has the honor of being ranked #25 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
With a ranking of #14, Eastern Illinois University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. This medium-sized public school is located in Charleston, Illinois.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Eastern Illinois University is ranked #27 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Saint Xavier University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
Not only is Saint Xavier University a great value, but it is also ranked #29 in Illinois for overall quality.
With a ranking of #16, University of Illinois at Springfield did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. University of Illinois at Springfield is a small public school located in Springfield, Illinois.
University of Illinois at Springfield has the honor of being ranked #32 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Read full value report on University of Illinois at Springfield
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking, coming in at #17. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, the school is a fairly large public institution.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is ranked #30 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Learn More About Value at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Dominican University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking, coming in at #18. Located in River Forest, Illinois, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
Not only is Dominican University a great value, but it is also ranked #21 in Illinois for overall quality.
With a ranking of #19, Olivet Nazarene University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Olivet Nazarene is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bourbonnais, Illinois.
Olivet Nazarene University has the honor of being ranked #17 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
With a ranking of #20, Lewis University did quite well on the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Romeoville, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Lewis University is ranked #20 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Wheaton College Illinois ranked #21 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Wheaton College Illinois is located in Wheaton, Illinois and has a small student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Wheaton College Illinois is ranked #10 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Northeastern Illinois University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Northeastern Illinois University is located in Chicago, Illinois and has a medium-sized student population. It is a public school.
Northeastern Illinois University has the honor of being ranked #35 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Illinois State University did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking, coming in at #23. Illinois State is a public institution located in Normal, Illinois.
Illinois State University has the honor of being ranked #11 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
North Park University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, North Park University is ranked #26 for quality in the state of Illinois.
Loyola University Chicago did quite well in the 2024 Best Master’s Degree Colleges for the Money (Income $75-$110k) in Illinois ranking, coming in at #25. Loyola Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and has a fairly large student population. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Loyola University Chicago has the honor of being ranked #4 in Illinois for overall quality on top of being a good value.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.