2021 Best Colleges for International Students in the Great Lakes Region
194
Colleges
$45,447
Avg Tuition & Fees*
63%
Avg 4-Year Grad Rate*
International students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college 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 Colleges for International Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking is part of that endeavor.
We analyzed 194 colleges and universities across the Great Lakes Region to determine which were the best for international students in the Great Lakes Region. Our ranking methodology focuses a number of different objective factors - such as the overall quality of the school, number of total international students at the school, and the percentage of international students on campus - to make this determination.
Get more details on our ranking methodology.
Custom Rankings
Since one ranking on its own is not enough to give you a complete understanding of your educational options, you can refine this list by location. We've also developed a number of other tools and rankings based on other factors. These other rankings highlight colleges that excel in other factors such as value or diversity as well as schools that excel in serving different groups of students such as online students 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. 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.
Top Colleges in the Great Lakes Region for International Students
See which schools came out on top of our ranking:
Our 2021 rankings named University of Michigan - Ann Arbor the best school for international students in the Great Lakes Region working on their bachelor’s degree. Ann Arbor, Michigan is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 9,144 students in 2020-2021.
International students make up 13.9% of the total student body at the school. Students studying at U-M come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #2 on our 2021 Best Colleges for international students in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Champaign, Illinois, the large public school awarded 9,305 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 19.2% of the total student population at the school is international. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to UIUC to study.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Read full report on University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Out of the 194 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the #3 spot on the list. Northwestern is a private not-for-profit institution located in Evanston, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 2,722 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 16.3% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Northwestern come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%.
Read More…
A rank of #4 on our list means University of Chicago is a great place for international students in the Great Lakes Region working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 2,163 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 26.6% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at UChicago come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wisconsin - Madison. The school came in at #5 in this year’s ranking. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, the large public school awarded 9,926 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 13.2% are international. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to UW - Madison to study.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on University of Wisconsin - Madison
Illinois Institute of Technology landed the #6 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Illinois Institute of Technology is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 620 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 33.9% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and Spain come to Illinois Tech to study.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read More…
Michigan State University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #7. Michigan State University is a large public school located in East Lansing, Michigan that handed out 9,450 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 9.1% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, South Korea, and India come to Michigan State to study.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Read More…
Indiana University - Bloomington came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Indiana University - Bloomington is a large public school located in Bloomington, Indiana that handed out 7,959 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 10.2% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at IU Bloomington are China, India, and South Korea.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full Indiana University - Bloomington Report
With a ranking of #9, Case Western Reserve University did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Case Western is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cleveland, Ohio. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,541 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 18.1% of the total student body at the school. Students studying at Case Western come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Case Western Reserve University
University of Notre Dame did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #10. Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit institution located in Notre Dame, Indiana. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 2,848 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 10.6% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at Notre Dame are China, India, and South Korea.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on University of Notre Dame
With a ranking of #11, Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Ohio State is a large public school situated in Columbus, Ohio. It awarded 12,018 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 9.1% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Ohio State come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full Ohio State University - Main Campus Report
With a ranking of #12, University of Dayton did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Dayton, Ohio is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 2,123 students in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 8.5% are international. Students from as far away as China, Saudi Arabia, and India come to UDayton to study.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Read More…
Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology ranked #13 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region list. Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology is a small private not-for-profit school located in Terre Haute, Indiana that handed out 490 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 11.6% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology are China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.
Read full report on Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology
Michigan Technological University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This medium-sized public school is located in Houghton, Michigan, and it awarded 1,202 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 9.0% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Michigan Tech come from such countries as India, China, and Iran.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read More…
With a ranking of #15, DePauw University did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. DePauw is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Greencastle, Indiana. It awarded 583 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 14.9% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at DePauw are China, Vietnam, and Japan.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full DePauw University Report
University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #16 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 5,247 students in 2020-2021.
International students make up 10.4% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at UIC are India, China, and Iran.
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DePaul University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking. DePaul is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 3,335 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 5.1% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at DePaul are China, India, and Saudi Arabia.
Read full report on DePaul University
Oberlin College ranked #18 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region list. Oberlin, Ohio is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 771 students in 2020-2021.
Around 12.1% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at Oberlin are China, South Korea, and Canada.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Full Oberlin College Report
Marquette University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region list. Marquette is a private not-for-profit institution located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 2,386 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 3.2% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at Marquette are China, India, and Bangladesh.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Marquette University
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #20. Located in Cincinnati, Ohio, the large public school awarded 6,500 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
International students make up 7.3% of the total student body at the school. Students studying at UC come from such countries as India, China, and South Korea.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read More…
Denison University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #21. Granville, Ohio is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 604 students in 2020-2021.
International students make up 16.2% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and Vietnam come to Denison to study.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read full report on Denison University
With a ranking of #22, Bradley University did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Bradley is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Peoria, Illinois. It awarded 1,287 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 3.1% are international. Students studying at Bradley come from such countries as India, China, and Sudan.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Bradley University Report
Loyola University Chicago ranked #23 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region list. Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 3,353 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 3.8% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at Loyola Chicago are China, India, and Saudi Arabia.
Read More…
With a ranking of #24, Calvin University did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region. Grand Rapids, Michigan is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 942 students in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 12.4% are international. Students studying at Calvin come from such countries as South Korea, Ghana, and Canada.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
Full Calvin University Report
University of Detroit Mercy ranked #25 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students in the Great Lakes Region list. Detroit Mercy is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Detroit, Michigan. It awarded 719 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 13.6% are international. Students studying at Detroit Mercy come from such countries as Canada, China, and India.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full University of Detroit Mercy Report
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