2023 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Engineering School for You
Out of the majors we analyze each year, engineering was ranked 6th in Illinois. In fact, 6,581 were awarded in the state in 2020-2021.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois ranking. This report analyzed 9 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best value programs for engineering students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
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 Engineering
Our 2023 rankings named University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign the best value school in Illinois for engineering students. 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. While working on their degree, engineering majors at UIUC accumulate an average of around $19,526 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $498, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
UIUC did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Engineering Schools in Illinois list.
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Out of the 9 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the # 2 spot on the list. SIUE is a large public school located in the suburb of Edwardsville.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SIUE are $11,496 a year. On average, engineering graduates from SIUE take out $23,094 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $270.
Full Engineering at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Report
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Illinois University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Dekalb.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at NIU are $14,738 per year. The average amount in student loans that engineering majors at NIU take out is $26,089. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $192.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Chicago is a great value for engineering students. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chicago.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UIC are $15,603 a year. On average, engineering graduates from UIC take out $21,050 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $217.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois list. SIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Carbondale.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SIUC are $15,240 a year. The average amount in student loans that engineering majors at SIUC take out is $23,547.
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Bradley University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for engineering students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Peoria, Bradley is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.
Bradley undergraduate students pay an average of $36,360 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, engineering majors at Bradley accumulate an average of around $26,971 in student debt.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Bradley also did well on our Best Engineering Schools in Illinois list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Northwestern University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois ranking. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Northwestern are $60,768 a year. After completing their degree, engineering graduates from Northwestern carry an average student debtload of $15,958.
Northwestern not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Engineering Schools in Illinois list.
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With a ranking of #8, Illinois Institute of Technology did quite well on this year’s best value schools for engineering students. Located in the city of Chicago, Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Illinois Tech are $50,375 per year. On average, engineering graduates from Illinois Tech take out $24,766 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Loyola University Chicago came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Engineering Schools in Illinois ranking. Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Loyola Chicago are $47,808 a year. Engineering majors at Loyola Chicago take out an average of $25,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Loyola Chicago also did well on our Best Engineering Schools in Illinois list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Request InformationBest Value Engineering Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Value Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Indiana | 5,383 |
| Michigan | 8,586 |
| Ohio | 8,648 |
| Wisconsin | 3,396 |
More Engineering Rankings in Illinois
Engineering Related Majors for Engineering
Engineering Majors to Study
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Computer & Information Sciences | 254,454 |
| Biological & Biomedical Sciences | 177,778 |
| Engineering Technologies | 85,188 |
| Mathematics & Statistics | 52,396 |
| Physical Sciences | 50,306 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 9 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 Petty Officer 3rd Class Declan Barnes.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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