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Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois

2023 Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

34 Colleges
$9,183 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$24,682 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Associate Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, liberal arts / sciences and humanities students earned 18,292 degrees and certificates from an Illinois school, making the subject the 3rd in the state.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

The Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 34 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best value associate degree programs for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

Top 10 Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Associate Degree Schools

Our analysis found Lincoln Land Community College to be the best value school for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students who want to pursue a associate degree in Illinois. Located in the midsize city of Springfield, LLCC is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at LLCC are $6,840 a year.

LLCC also made our Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list, coming in at #3.

Full Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities at Lincoln Land Community College Report

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The excellent associate degree programs at William Rainey Harper College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value liberal arts / sciences and humanities schools in Illinois. Harper College is a large public school located in the large suburb of Palatine.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Harper College are $9,870 a year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Harper College is ranked #2 for overall quality for liberal arts / sciences and humanities in Illinois.

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#3

Black Hawk College

Moline, IL

Out of the 34 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Black Hawk College landed the # 3 spot on the list. BHC is a small public school located in the city of Moline.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BHC are $7,500 per year.

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#4

Waubonsee Community College

Sugar Grove, IL

Out of the 34 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Waubonsee Community College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the rural area of Sugar Grove, Waubonsee is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Waubonsee are $9,271 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Waubonsee also is in the top 15% of our Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois ranking.

Full Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities at Waubonsee Community College Report

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Shawnee Community College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list. Shawnee Community College is a small public school located in the rural area of Ullin.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Shawnee Community College are $6,090 per year.

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#6

College of Lake County

Grayslake, IL

College of Lake County did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students to get a associate degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Grayslake, College of Lake County is a public school with a fairly large student population.

College of Lake County undergraduate students pay an average of $9,632 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

College of Lake County also claimed a spot on our Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

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#7

College of DuPage

Glen Ellyn, IL

College of DuPage came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Associate Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. COD is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Glen Ellyn.

COD undergraduate students pay an average of $9,750 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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Moraine Valley Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students to get a associate degree. It came in at #8 on the list. MVCC is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Palos Hills.

MVCC undergraduate students pay an average of $8,118 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs. Harold Washington College is a medium-sized public school located in the large city of Chicago.

Harold Washington College undergraduate students pay an average of $11,520 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#10

Prairie State College

Chicago Heights, IL

Prairie State College landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs. Located in the large suburb of Chicago Heights, Prairie State College is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Prairie State College are $9,342 a year.

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Best Value Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Value Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 3,815
Michigan 9,711
Ohio 11,432
Wisconsin 2,376

Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Liberal Arts General Studies 556,813

Majors Similar to Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities

Related Major Annual Graduates
Visual & Performing Arts 149,215
English Language & Literature 54,635
Foreign Languages & Linguistics 33,333
Theology & Religious Vocations 27,459
Philosophy & Religious Studies 19,993

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 Jacques Sablet (Switzerland, Morges, 1749-1803).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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