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Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region

119 Colleges
$42,937 Avg Salary
$23,962 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best General Education School for You

General Education is the #39 most popular major in the country with 29,810 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This report analyzed 119 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones were the most popular programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the General Education program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for education majors pursuing a .

Our analysis found Ohio State University - Main Campus to be the most popular school for general education students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . Ohio State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Columbus.

While working on their degree, education majors at Ohio State accumulate an average of around $19,620 in student debt.

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#2

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Purdue University - Main Campus. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Purdue is a very large public school located in the small city of West Lafayette.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at Purdue take out is $21,757.

Read full report on General Education at Purdue University - Main Campus

The excellent programs at Grand Valley State University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best general education schools in the Great Lakes Region . GVSU is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Allendale.

While working on their degree, education majors at GVSU accumulate an average of around $29,500 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $298.

Read full report on General Education at Grand Valley State University

The excellent programs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best general education schools in the Great Lakes Region . UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Champaign.

After completing their degree, education graduates from UIUC carry an average student debt load of $20,500.

Full General Education at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Report

#5

Ivy Tech Community College

Indianapolis, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Ivy Tech Community College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Ivy Tech Community College is a very large public school located in the large city of Indianapolis.

Education majors at Ivy Tech Community College take out an average of $9,646 in student loans while working on their egree.

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#6

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

With a ranking of #6, Michigan State University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general education students. Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public school with a very large student population.

On average, education graduates from Michigan State take out $26,000 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $255, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full General Education at Michigan State University Report

University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general education programs. UWM is a very large public school located in the large city of Milwaukee.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at UWM take out is $31,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $189.

Full General Education at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Report

With a ranking of #8, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general education students. U-M is a very large public school located in the city of Ann Arbor.

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University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. UW - Madison is a very large public school located in the city of Madison.

Read full report on General Education at University of Wisconsin - Madison

University of Wisconsin - Stout landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general education programs. Located in the town of Menomonie, UW - Stout is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on General Education at University of Wisconsin - Stout

University of Wisconsin - Green Bay came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the city of Green Bay, UW - Green Bay is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at UW - Green Bay take out is $22,306.

Full General Education at University of Wisconsin - Green Bay Report

The University of Findlay ranked #12 on this year’s Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the distant town of Findlay, Findlay is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full General Education at The University of Findlay Report

Kent State University at Kent ranked #13 on this year’s Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the large suburb of Kent, Kent State is a public college with a very large student population.

On average, education graduates from Kent State take out $31,000 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $238, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on General Education at Kent State University at Kent

University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general education students. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in the town of Stevens Point, UW - Stevens Point is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

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University of Michigan - Flint landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general education programs. Located in the city of Flint, UM Flint is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Full General Education at University of Michigan - Flint Report

Purdue University Northwest landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general education programs. Purdue Northwest is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Hammond.

Read full report on General Education at Purdue University Northwest

#17

Edgewood College

Madison, WI

Edgewood College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general education students. It came in at #17 on the list. Edgewood is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Madison.

Read full report on General Education at Edgewood College

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional popular schools for General Education students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Most Popular General Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
18 John Carroll University University Heights, OH
19 Stark State College North Canton, OH
19 McKendree University Lebanon, IL
21 Maranatha Baptist University Watertown, WI
22 University of Wisconsin - Platteville Platteville, WI
23 Wilmington College Wilmington, OH

Best General Education Colleges by State

Explore the best general education schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 700
Ohio 706
Illinois 453
Indiana 502
Wisconsin 515

One of 14 majors within the area of study, general education has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Education

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • 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 the rest 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to KOKUYO.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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