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Best Value Economics Master's Degree Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Value Economics Master's Degree Schools in Illinois

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

11 Colleges
$23,245 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$65,318 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Economics Master's Degree School for You

With 2,155 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, economics is the #13 most popular major in Illinois.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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 Economics Master's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Our analysis looked at 11 schools in Illinois to see which master's degree programs offered the best value experiences for economics 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.

2023 Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for economics majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 10 Best Economics Master's Degree Schools

Our analysis found Illinois State University to be the best value school for economics students who want to pursue a master’s degree in Illinois. Illinois State is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Normal.

Illinois State graduate students pay an average of $9,773 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Illinois State also made our Best Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list, coming in at #5.

Read More…

Out of the 11 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at UIUC are $17,823 a year.

UIUC also took the #3 spot in our Best Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois rankings.

Read full report on Economics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Western Illinois University is a great value for economics students working on their master’s degree. Located in the town of Macomb, WIU is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at WIU are $12,182 per year.

Read full report on Economics at Western Illinois University

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Northern Illinois University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a large public school located in the suburb of Dekalb.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at NIU are $11,390 per year.

Read full report on Economics at Northern Illinois University

#5

Eastern Illinois University

Charleston, IL

The excellent master’s degree programs at Eastern Illinois University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best value economics schools in Illinois. Located in the town of Charleston, EIU is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at EIU are $10,640 per year.

Read full report on Economics at Eastern Illinois University

With a ranking of #6, Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well on this year’s best value schools for economics students working on their master’s degree. SIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Carbondale.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at SIUC are $16,162 a year.

Full Economics at Southern Illinois University Carbondale Report

University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for economics students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Chicago.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at UIC are $17,277 per year.

Read full report on Economics at University of Illinois at Chicago

#8

DePaul University

Chicago, IL

DePaul University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at DePaul are $18,341 a year.

Full Economics at DePaul University Report

#9

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at Northwestern are $56,567 per year.

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

Read More…

#10

Roosevelt University

Chicago, IL

Roosevelt University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for economics students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the large city of Chicago, Roosevelt is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at Roosevelt are $21,605 per year.

Read More…

Best Value Economics Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 1,496
Ohio 1,136
Indiana 889
Wisconsin 1,225

Economics is one of 12 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Economics

Related Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 49,282
Sociology 38,475
General Social Sciences 18,997
International Relations & National Security 14,306
Anthropology 11,415

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 pixabay.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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