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Best Social Work Master's Degree Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Social Work Master's Degree Schools in Illinois

15 Colleges
$44,665 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Social Work Master's Degree School for You

With 2,711 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, social work is the #11 most popular major in Illinois.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Social Work Master's Degree Schools in Illinois to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 15 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois

Check out the social work master's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 10 Best Social Work Master's Degree Schools

#1

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

Our 2023 rankings named University of Chicago the best school in Illinois for social work students working on their master’s degree. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Full Social Work at University of Chicago Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

#3

Erikson Institute

Chicago, IL

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Erikson Institute is a great place for social work students working on their master’s degree. The Erikson Institute is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

Full Social Work at Erikson Institute Report

#4

Aurora University

Aurora, IL

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Aurora University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Aurora is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Aurora.

Read full report on Social Work at Aurora University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Loyola University Chicago. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Read full report on Social Work at Loyola University Chicago

University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree social work programs. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chicago.

Read full report on Social Work at University of Illinois at Chicago

#7

Dominican University

River Forest, IL

Dominican University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the suburb of River Forest, Dominican U is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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Illinois State University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Illinois State is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Normal.

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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. SIUE is a large public school located in the large suburb of Edwardsville.

Read full report on Social Work at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

University of St Francis came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Social Work Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. University of Saint Francis is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Joliet.

Read full report on Social Work at University of St Francis

Best Social Work Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Social Work Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 2,413
Ohio 2,332
Indiana 1,545
Wisconsin 1,041

One of 5 majors within the area of study, social work has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Administration 16,905
Human Services 13,238
Public Policy 6,430
Community Organization & Advocacy 3,096
Other Public Administration 588

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 15 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 Army Medicine.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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