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Best Value Public Administration Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Value Public Administration Schools in Illinois

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

10 Colleges
$22,295 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$51,622 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Administration School for You

In 2020-2021, 440 degrees and certificates were awarded to public administration students who went to a Illinois college or university. This makes it the #29 most popular major in the state.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Value Public Administration Schools in Illinois to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 10 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best value programs for public admin students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

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 Public Administration Schools in Illinois

Check out the public admin programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best Public Administration Schools

#1

Governors State University

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

Our 2023 rankings named Governors State University the best value school in Illinois for public administration students. Located in the rural area of University Park, GSU is a public college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at GSU are $10,108 per 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 #2 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Dekalb.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at NIU are $14,738 a year.

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$12,053 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 10 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Springfield landed the # 3 spot on the list. UIS is a small public school located in the medium-sized city of Springfield.

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

Read full report on Public Administration at University of Illinois at Springfield

$11,496 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a great value for public administration students. SIUE is a large public school located in the large suburb of Edwardsville.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SIUE are $11,496 per year.

Read full report on Public Administration at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

#5

Aurora University

Aurora, IL
$26,760 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 10 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Aurora University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Aurora is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Aurora.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Aurora are $26,760 a year.

Read full report on Public Administration at Aurora University

$15,603 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value public administration programs. UIC is a very large public school located in the large city of Chicago.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UIC are $15,603 a year.

Full Public Administration at University of Illinois at Chicago Report

#7

DePaul University

Chicago, IL
$42,012 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, DePaul University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students. Located in the large city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at DePaul are $42,012 a year.

Read full report on Public Administration at DePaul University

$15,240 Average Tuition & Fees

Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for public administration students. It came in at #8 on the list. SIUC is a large public school located in the city of Carbondale.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SIUC are $15,240 a year.

Read full report on Public Administration at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

$14,169 Average Tuition & Fees

National Louis University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Schools in Illinois list. NLU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

NLU undergraduate students pay an average of $14,169 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#10

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL
$60,768 Average Tuition & Fees

Northwestern University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value public administration programs. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Northwestern undergraduate students pay an average of $60,768 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Northwestern also took the #1 spot in our Best Public Administration Schools in Illinois rankings.

Full Public Administration at Northwestern University Report

Best Value Public Administration Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 263
Ohio 293
Indiana 449
Wisconsin 44

Public Administration is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Public Admin

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 33,631
Public Policy 3,737
Human Services 1,277
Community Organization & Advocacy 741
Other Public Administration 295

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 10 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 The Official CTBTO Photostream.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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