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Best Value Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

6 Colleges
$32,969 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$70,619 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree School for You

Physical Sciences is the #20 most popular major in Illinois with 1,686 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Physical Sciences Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Our analysis looked at 6 schools in Illinois to see which doctor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for physical sciences students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

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. 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.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois

Check out the physical sciences doctor's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Best Illinois Schools for Affordable Quality for a Doctorate in Physical Sciences

Our analysis found University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to be the best value school for physical sciences students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in Illinois. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

UIUC graduate students pay an average of $17,823 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UIUC is ranked #4 for overall quality for physical sciences in Illinois.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Northern Illinois University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a large public school located in the small suburb of Dekalb.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at NIU are $11,390 a year.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Northern Illinois University

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Chicago is a great value for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chicago.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UIC are $17,277 a year.

Full Physical Sciences at University of Illinois at Chicago Report

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Illinois Institute of Technology is a great value for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Chicago, Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at Illinois Tech are $30,822 a year.

Read full report on Physical Sciences at Illinois Institute of Technology

#5

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Northwestern University is a great value for physical sciences students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Northwestern graduate students pay an average of $56,567 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Northwestern did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list.

Full Physical Sciences at Northwestern University Report

#6

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

University of Chicago ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

UChicago graduate students pay an average of $63,936 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

UChicago did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Physical Sciences Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list.

Full Physical Sciences at University of Chicago Report

Best Value Physical Sciences Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Value Physical Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 951
Michigan 1,288
Ohio 1,581
Wisconsin 873

Physical Sciences Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Chemistry 21,239
Physics 13,674
Geological & Earth Sciences 7,821
General Physical Sciences 3,823
Astronomy & Astrophysics 1,375
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology 1,140
Materials Sciences 658
Other Physical Science 538
Physics and Astronomy 38

Related Major Annual Graduates
Computer & Information Sciences 254,454
Engineering 198,468
Biological & Biomedical Sciences 177,778
Engineering Technologies 85,188
Mathematics & Statistics 52,396

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 6 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 NASA.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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