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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

Economics is the #34 most popular major in Illinois with 384 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search 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.

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 Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Economics Master's Degree Colleges.

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 medium-sized 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 full report on Economics at Illinois State University

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at UIUC are $17,823 per year.

UIUC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list.

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

Out of the 11 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Illinois University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the town of Macomb, WIU is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

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

Read More…

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Illinois University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. NIU is a large public school located in the small suburb of Dekalb.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at NIU are $11,390 a year.

Full Economics at Northern Illinois University Report

#5

Eastern Illinois University

Charleston, IL

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Eastern Illinois University is a great value for economics students working on their master’s degree. Located in the town of Charleston, EIU is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

EIU graduate students pay an average of $10,640 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

Southern Illinois University Carbondale 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 #6 on the list. SIUC is a 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.

Read full report on Economics at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

University of Illinois at Chicago ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. UIC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chicago.

UIC graduate students pay an average of $17,277 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Economics at University of Illinois at Chicago Report

#8

DePaul University

Chicago, IL

DePaul University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree economics programs. Located in the 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 graduate student at DePaul are $18,341 a year.

Read More…

#9

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern 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 #9 on the list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Northwestern graduate students pay an average of $56,567 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Northwestern also took the #1 spot in our Best Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois rankings.

Read More…

#10

Roosevelt University

Chicago, IL

Roosevelt University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Economics Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the large city of Chicago, Roosevelt is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Roosevelt graduate students pay an average of $21,605 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Economics at Roosevelt University

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 231
Ohio 199
Indiana 97
Wisconsin 265

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

Related Major Annual Graduates
International Relations & National Security 5,010
Political Science & Government 2,664
Geography & Cartography 2,315
Sociology 1,907
Anthropology 1,446

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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