2023 Best Value Physics Schools in Illinois
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Physics School for You
Physics is the #66 most popular major in Illinois with 483 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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.
The Best Value Physics 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 11 schools in Illinois to see which programs offered the best value experiences for physics students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. 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.
In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 10 Best Physics Schools
Our analysis found Southern Illinois University Edwardsville to be the best value school for physics students who want to pursue a degree in Illinois. SIUE is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Edwardsville.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SIUE are $11,496 a year.
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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a great value for physics students. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a very large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UIUC are $17,634 per year. Physics majors at UIUC take out an average of $19,750 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $674.
UIUC also took the #3 spot in our Best Physics Schools in Illinois rankings.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Western Illinois University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools in Illinois list. Located in the remote town of Macomb, WIU is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
WIU undergraduate students pay an average of $13,297 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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Out of the 11 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois State University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the suburb of Normal.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Illinois State are $13,968 per year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Illinois State also did well on our Best Physics Schools in Illinois list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Out of the 11 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Chicago landed the # 5 spot on the list. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chicago.
UIC undergraduate students pay an average of $15,603 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
Full Physics at University of Illinois at Chicago Report
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Northern Illinois University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physics Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Dekalb.
NIU undergraduate students pay an average of $14,738 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #7, Illinois Institute of Technology did quite well on this year’s best value schools for physics students. Located in the large city of Chicago, Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Illinois Tech are $50,375 a year.
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Columbia College Chicago did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for physics students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large city of Chicago, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
Columbia undergraduate students pay an average of $27,786 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #9, Northwestern University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for physics students. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Northwestern are $60,768 a 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 physics in Illinois.
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University of Chicago landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value physics programs. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UChicago are $60,963 per year. While working on their degree, physics majors at UChicago accumulate an average of around $19,972 in student debt.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UChicago is ranked #2 for overall quality for physics in Illinois.
Read full report on Physics at University of Chicago
Request InformationBest Value Physics Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Value Physics Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Michigan | 344 |
| Ohio | 393 |
| Indiana | 255 |
| Wisconsin | 264 |
More Physics Rankings in Illinois
Physics Related Majors for Physics
One of 8 majors within the area of study, physics has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | 21,239 |
| Geological & Earth Sciences | 7,821 |
| General Physical Sciences | 3,823 |
| Astronomy & Astrophysics | 1,375 |
| Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology | 1,140 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 11 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 A. T. Service.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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