Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Most Popular Online Education Schools in Illinois

Find Schools Near

2023 Most Popular Online Education Schools in Illinois

15 Colleges
$49,951 Avg Salary
$25,324 Avg Student Debt

Out of the majors we analyze each year, education was ranked 4th in Illinois. In fact, 10,567 were awarded in the state in 2020-2021.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Most Popular Online Education Schools in Illinois ranking. This report analyzed 15 schools in Illinois to see which ones were the most popular online programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from schools with online programs.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Online Education Colleges.

Our 2023 rankings named National Louis University the most popular online school in Illinois for education students. Located in the city of Chicago, NLU is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

On average, education graduates from NLU take out $41,606 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Education at National Louis University Report

The excellent online programs at Southern Illinois University Carbondale helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Illinois. Located in the small city of Carbondale, SIUC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at SIUC take out is $19,901.

Read More…

#3

Concordia University, Chicago

River Forest, IL

The excellent online programs at Concordia University, Chicago helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Illinois. Located in the large suburb of River Forest, Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.

While working on their degree, education majors at Concordia University, Chicago accumulate an average of around $25,000 in student debt.

Full Education at Concordia University, Chicago Report

#4

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, IL

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Olivet Nazarene University is a great place for education students pursuing an online degree. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small suburb of Bourbonnais.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at Olivet Nazarene take out is $27,000.

Read full report on Education at Olivet Nazarene University

The excellent online programs at University of St Francis helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Illinois. Located in the suburb of Joliet, University of Saint Francis is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at University of Saint Francis take out is $23,878.

Full Education at University of St Francis Report

Rasmussen University - Illinois did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for education students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Rockford, Rasmussen University - Illinois is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

After completing their degree, education graduates from Rasmussen University - Illinois carry an average student debtload of $23,144.

Full Education at Rasmussen University - Illinois Report

With a ranking of #7, Western Illinois University did quite well on this year’s best schools for education students. WIU is a medium-sized public school located in the remote town of Macomb.

On average, education graduates from WIU take out $27,973 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Education at Western Illinois University Report

Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Online Education Schools in Illinois list. RFUMS is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of North Chicago.

Read More…

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best education programs. Located in the large suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public college with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, education graduates from SIUE carry an average student debtload of $22,125. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $184, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Education at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

#10

Erikson Institute

Chicago, IL

Erikson Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for education students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the city of Chicago, The Erikson Institute is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Education at Erikson Institute Report

Best Education Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Most Popular Education Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 11,570
Michigan 5,939
Ohio 9,238
Wisconsin 5,792

More Education Rankings in Illinois

Education Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
General Education 29,810
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832
Student Counseling 13,858
Instructional Media Design 8,695
Teaching English or French 5,791
Other Education 4,858
Teaching Assistants 2,751
Educational Assessment 2,552
Multilingual Education 1,910
Education Philosophy 737
International Education 293

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Sciences 205,984
Psychology 195,678
Communication & Journalism 120,571
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 15 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 Horadrim.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.