2023 Best Value Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Civil Engineering School for You
In 2020-2021, 816 degrees and certificates were awarded to civil engineering students who went to a Illinois college or university. This makes it the #50 most popular major in the state.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. 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.
The Best Value Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 7 schools in Illinois to see which programs offered the best value experiences for civil eng students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Best Illinois Schools for Affordable Quality in Civil Engineering
Our 2023 rankings named Southern Illinois University Edwardsville the best value school in Illinois for civil engineering students. SIUE is a large public school located in the suburb of Edwardsville.
SIUE undergraduate students pay an average of $11,496 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that civil eng majors at SIUE take out is $25,375. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $309, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Request Information
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois list. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UIUC are $17,634 a year. On average, civil eng graduates from UIUC take out $18,641 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $485.
UIUC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois list.
Read full report on Civil Engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Request Information
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Chicago is a great value for civil engineering students. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Chicago.
UIC undergraduate students pay an average of $15,603 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that civil eng majors at UIC take out is $19,500.
Full Civil Engineering at University of Illinois at Chicago Report
Request Information
Out of the 7 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the # 3 spot on the list. SIUC is a large public school located in the small city of Carbondale.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SIUC are $15,240 per year. After completing their degree, civil eng graduates from SIUC carry an average student debtload of $19,313.
Read full report on Civil Engineering at Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Request Information
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bradley University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois list. Located in the midsize city of Peoria, Bradley is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Bradley are $36,360 per year. The average amount in student loans that civil eng majors at Bradley take out is $27,000.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Bradley also did well on our Best Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Civil Engineering at Bradley University Report
Request Information
Northwestern University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value civil engineering programs. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Northwestern are $60,768 per year.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Northwestern is ranked #1 for overall quality for civil eng in Illinois.
Request Information
Illinois Institute of Technology ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Civil Engineering Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Chicago, Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Illinois Tech are $50,375 a year. The average amount in student loans that civil eng majors at Illinois Tech take out is $22,993.
Request InformationBest Value Civil Engineering Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Value Civil Engineering Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Michigan | 443 |
| Ohio | 746 |
| Indiana | 487 |
| Wisconsin | 410 |
More Civil Engineering Rankings in Illinois
Majors Related to Civil Eng
One of 40 majors within the area of study, civil engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Mechanical Engineering | 46,178 |
| Electrical Engineering | 28,844 |
| Computer Engineering | 17,987 |
| Chemical Engineering | 12,917 |
| Biomedical Engineering | 12,811 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 7 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 Master Sgt. Roger Parsons.
More about our data sources and methodologies.