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Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

13 Colleges
$20,444 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$35,207 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Communication & Media Studies School for You

In 2020-2021, 270 degrees and certificates were awarded to communication and media studies students who went to a Illinois college or university. This makes it the #46 most popular major in the state.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 13 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best value programs for communications students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for communications majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Communication & Media Studies Schools

$27,786 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Columbia College Chicago the best value school in Illinois for communication and media studies students. Located in the large city of Chicago, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Columbia are $27,786 per year.

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$13,968 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Illinois State University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois list. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Normal.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Illinois State are $13,968 per year.

Illinois State not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #5 on our Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois list.

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#3

Eastern Illinois University

Charleston, IL
$12,297 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Eastern Illinois University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois list. Located in the distant town of Charleston, EIU is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

EIU undergraduate students pay an average of $12,297 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#4

Governors State University

University Park, IL
$10,108 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Governors State University is a great value for communication and media studies students. Located in the rural area of University Park, GSU is a public school with a small student population.

GSU undergraduate students pay an average of $10,108 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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$14,738 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Northern Illinois University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Dekalb.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at NIU are $14,738 per year.

Full Communication & Media Studies at Northern Illinois University Report

$17,634 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for communication and media studies students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

UIUC undergraduate students pay an average of $17,634 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

UIUC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Illinois list.

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$11,496 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did quite well on this year’s best value schools for communication and media studies students. SIUE is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Edwardsville.

SIUE undergraduate students pay an average of $11,496 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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$12,064 Average Tuition & Fees

Northeastern Illinois University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value communication and media studies programs. Northeastern Illinois University is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Chicago.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Northeastern Illinois University are $12,064 per year.

Full Communication & Media Studies at Northeastern Illinois University Report

$12,053 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, University of Illinois at Springfield did quite well on this year’s best value schools for communication and media studies students. UIS is a small public school located in the city of Springfield.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UIS are $12,053 a year.

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$15,603 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for communication and media studies students. It came in at #10 on the list. UIC is a very 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.

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Best Value Communication & Media Studies Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Value Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 163
Ohio 100
Indiana 304
Wisconsin 58

Communication & Media Studies is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Communications

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Relations & Advertising 2,828
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 2,562
Journalism 1,238
Communication & Journalism (Other) 341
Publishing 214

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 13 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 UNU-WIDER from Helsinki, Finland.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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