by our College Data Analytics TeamWith all of the options you have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our Top Great Lakes Region Colleges ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
Our analysis looked at 387 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best in terms of overall quality. To come up with this ranking, we look at more than 20 factors that are all objective measurements. These factors include freshman retention, graduation rate, student-to-faculty ratio, and post graduate earnings, among other things.
We've developed a number of other tools and rankings to help you make your college decision. Start by filtering this list by location or field of study and then explore our other rankings that feature schools great for different groups of students such as veterans or returnings adults.
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. If you're torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another!
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our 2025 rankings named University of Chicago the best school in the Great Lakes Region in terms of overall quality for students working on their bachelor’s degree.
The impressive student-to-faculty rate of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. During the early years of their career, graduates from UChicago make an average of $91,885 a year.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #2 on our 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
The impressive student-to-faculty rate of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Northwestern make an average of $89,363 per year during the early years of their career.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. The school came in at #3 in the Great Lakes Region on this year’s overall quality ranking.
The school boasts an average 4-year graduation rate of 81%, which is excellent when compared to the national rate of 33%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from U-M is $83,648 during the early years of their career.
A rank of #4 on our Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list means University of Notre Dame is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree.
The 4-year grad rate at the school is 93%. That’s impressive when you compare it to the national rate of 33%. During the early years of their career, graduates from Notre Dame make an average of $99,980 a year.
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Indiana University - Bloomington helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools in the Great Lakes Region .
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from IU Bloomington is $63,742 during the early years of their career.
Fox College landed the #6 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Fox College go into careers with an average salary of $41,539 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #7, University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from UW - Madison go into careers with an average salary of $73,792 during the early years of their career.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #8 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from UIUC is $81,054 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #9, Michigan State University did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1% Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State make an average of $67,253 per year during the early years of their career.
Purdue University - Main Campus ranked #10 on this year’s Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Purdue is $72,424 during the early years of their career.
Ohio State University - Main Campus came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $60,409 during the early years of their career..
With a ranking of #12, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from Loyola Chicago make an average of $71,530 a year.
With a ranking of #13, University of Northwestern Ohio did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from University of Northwestern Ohio go into careers with an average salary of $50,968 during the early years of their career.
Herzing University - Madison did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #14.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Herzing University - Madison is $36,909 during the early years of their career.
Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology landed the #15 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology is $101,253 during the early years of their career.
Rasmussen University - Illinois ranked #16 on this year’s Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
The school boasts an average 4-year graduation rate of 100%, which is excellent when compared to the national rate of 33%. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Rasmussen University - Illinois make an average of $39,080 per year during the early years of their career.
Marquette University landed the #17 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Marquette make an average of $78,257 per year during the early years of their career.
Case Western Reserve University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
With a student-to-faculty rate of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Case Western make an average of $87,989 per year during the early years of their career.
Union Institute & University landed the #19 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Union is $64,080 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #20, Concordia University, Chicago did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $54,089 during the early years of their career..
Miami University - Oxford landed the #21 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. During the early years of their career, graduates from Miami University - Oxford make an average of $55,076 a year.
DePaul University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
During the early years of their career, graduates from DePaul make an average of $68,751 a year.
With a ranking of #23, University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from UC is $54,810 during the early years of their career.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago landed the #24 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $40,151 during the early years of their career..
With a ranking of #25, Gateway Technical College did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region list.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty rate of 8 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. During the early years of their career, graduates from Gateway Technical College make an average of $40,264 a year.
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 20% of this year’s ranking:
View Best Colleges Nationwide >
To learn more about the schools below, just click on their names:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | Kenyon College | Gambier, OH |
| 52 | Chippewa Valley Technical College | Eau Claire, WI |
| 53 | Grand Valley State University | Allendale, MI |
| 54 | Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, MI |
| 55 | Aurora University | Aurora, IL |
| 56 | Denison University | Granville, OH |
| 57 | Vincennes University | Vincennes, IN |
| 58 | Butler University | Indianapolis, IN |
| 59 | University of Wisconsin - La Crosse | La Crosse, WI |
All Majors and Fields of Study >
These schools also performed well in our Best Colleges ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 60 | National Louis University | Chicago, IL |
| 61 | Fox Valley Technical College | Appleton, WI |
| 62 | University of Wisconsin - Whitewater | Whitewater, WI |
| 63 | Wheaton College Illinois | Wheaton, IL |
| 64 | Cleveland Institute of Art | Cleveland, OH |
| 65 | Saint Anthony College of Nursing | Rockford, IL |
| 66 | University of Detroit Mercy | Detroit, MI |
| 67 | Kettering University | Flint, MI |
| 68 | DePauw University | Greencastle, IN |
| 69 | Benedictine University | Lisle, IL |
| 70 | College for Creative Studies | Detroit, MI |
| 71 | Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute | Wooster, OH |
| 72 | Cleary University | Howell, MI |
| 73 | Mount Mary University | Milwaukee, WI |
| 74 | Northeast Wisconsin Technical College | Green Bay, WI |
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 75 | Lakeview College of Nursing | Danville, IL |
| 76 | Wayne State University | Detroit, MI |
| 77 | Lincoln Land Community College | Springfield, IL |
| 78 | Oakland University | Rochester Hills, MI |
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.