Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Find Schools Near

2023 Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region

232 Colleges
$35,460 Avg Salary
$24,793 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Social Sciences School for You

With 205,984 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, social sciences is the #6 most popular major in the United States.

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.

The Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 232 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones were the most popular programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Social Sciences program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Social Sciences Colleges.

Our analysis found University of Wisconsin - Madison to be the most popular school for social sciences students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public college with a very large student population.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from UW - Madison carry an average student debt load of $21,528. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $260.

Full Social Sciences at University of Wisconsin - Madison Report

#2

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

The excellent programs at University of Chicago helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best social sciences schools in the Great Lakes Region . UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from UChicago carry an average student debt load of $14,944. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $708.

Read More…

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, social sciences majors at U-M accumulate an average of around $16,521 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $456, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Ohio State University - Main Campus is a great place for social sciences students. Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

On average, social sciences graduates from Ohio State take out $23,001 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $258, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Ohio State University - Main Campus

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a great place for social sciences students. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at UIUC take out is $20,188. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $337, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

#6

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

Michigan State University ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Michigan State is a fairly large public school located in the city of East Lansing.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Michigan State carry an average student debt load of $26,575. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $377.

Full Social Sciences at Michigan State University Report

#7

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Northwestern take out is $15,919. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $456, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Social Sciences at Northwestern University Report

Miami University - Oxford landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. Located in the town of Oxford, Miami University - Oxford is a public college with a large student population.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Miami University - Oxford carry an average student debt load of $23,978. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $722.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Miami University - Oxford

#9

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, IN

With a ranking of #9, University of Notre Dame did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students. Located in the large suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Social Sciences majors at Notre Dame take out an average of $19,814 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $485, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Notre Dame

With a ranking of #10, Indiana University - Bloomington did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students. IU Bloomington is a very large public school located in the small city of Bloomington.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from IU Bloomington carry an average student debt load of $20,225. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $466, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Social Sciences at Indiana University - Bloomington Report

#11

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

With a ranking of #11, Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students. Located in the small city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Purdue carry an average student debt load of $20,655. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $257.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Purdue University - Main Campus

Ohio University - Athens Campus landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. Located in the distant town of Athens, OHIO Athens is a public college with a very large student population.

On average, social sciences graduates from OHIO Athens take out $26,200 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $353.

Full Social Sciences at Ohio University - Athens Campus Report

University of Cincinnati - Main Campus ranked #13 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. UC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Cincinnati.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at UC take out is $24,375. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $364.

Read More…

With a ranking of #14, University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chicago.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from UIC carry an average student debt load of $21,305. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $185, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Social Sciences at University of Illinois at Chicago Report

#15

Cleveland State University

Cleveland, OH

Cleveland State University ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Cleveland State University is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Cleveland.

On average, social sciences graduates from Cleveland State University take out $26,768 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Cleveland State University

#16

Marquette University

Milwaukee, WI

Marquette University landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. Marquette is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Milwaukee.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Marquette take out is $23,225. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $462.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Marquette University

Loyola University Chicago ranked #17 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at Loyola Chicago take out is $22,351. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $527.

Read More…

#18

DePaul University

Chicago, IL

DePaul University landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. Located in the city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that social sciences majors at DePaul take out is $23,867. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $425, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Social Sciences at DePaul University

With a ranking of #19, Grand Valley State University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for social sciences students. Located in the suburb of Allendale, GVSU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

On average, social sciences graduates from GVSU take out $24,836 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $243.

Read More…

University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee ranked #20 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Milwaukee, UWM is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from UWM carry an average student debt load of $27,391. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $187.

Read More…

Kent State University at Kent did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for social sciences students. It came in at #21 on the list. Kent State is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Kent.

On average, social sciences graduates from Kent State take out $27,005 in student loans while working on their degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $261.

Full Social Sciences at Kent State University at Kent Report

University of Wisconsin - Whitewater landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. UW - Whitewater is a fairly large public school located in the town of Whitewater.

On average, social sciences graduates from UW - Whitewater take out $25,144 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Social Sciences at University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

Illinois State University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Illinois State is a fairly large public school located in the midsize suburb of Normal.

Social Sciences majors at Illinois State take out an average of $23,378 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 $271.

Read More…

#24

Eastern Michigan University

Ypsilanti, MI

Eastern Michigan University ranked #24 on this year’s Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Eastern Michigan is a large public school located in the large suburb of Ypsilanti.

While working on their degree, social sciences majors at Eastern Michigan accumulate an average of around $27,492 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $138, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Social Sciences at Eastern Michigan University Report

#25

Central Michigan University

Mount Pleasant, MI

Central Michigan University landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular social sciences programs. Central Michigan is a fairly large public school located in the distant town of Mount Pleasant.

After completing their degree, social sciences graduates from Central Michigan carry an average student debt load of $28,410. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $285.

Full Social Sciences at Central Michigan University Report

#26

Wayne State University

Detroit, MI
#28

Indiana State University

Terre Haute, IN
#29

Western Michigan University

Kalamazoo, MI
#34

Ball State University

Muncie, IN

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional popular schools for Social Sciences students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Most Popular Social Sciences Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
36 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH
37 Denison University Granville, OH
38 Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN
39 University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point Stevens Point, WI
40 University of Michigan - Dearborn Dearborn, MI
41 DePauw University Greencastle, IN
42 University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh Oshkosh, WI
43 Oakland University Rochester Hills, MI
44 Wheaton College Illinois Wheaton, IL
45 University of Wisconsin - River Falls River Falls, WI
46 University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH

Best Social Sciences Colleges by State

Explore the best social sciences colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 2,941
Michigan 4,213
Ohio 4,915
Illinois 5,866
Wisconsin 3,504

Social Sciences Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 49,282
Economics 49,055
Sociology 38,475
General Social Sciences 18,997
International Relations & National Security 14,306
Anthropology 11,415
Criminology 11,039
Geography & Cartography 8,526
Other Social Sciences 2,414
Urban Studies 1,507
Sociology & Anthropology 541
Archeology 339
Demography & Population Studies 88

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 327,871
Psychology 195,678
Communication & Journalism 120,571
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

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 AndrГ© KГјnzelmann.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.