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Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region

132 Colleges
$48,358 Avg Salary
$24,664 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best General Business/Commerce School for You

There are so many business programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Business Degree Central has developed this Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 132 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which programs were the most popular for business students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the General Business/Commerce program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for general business majors pursuing a .

Our analysis found Indiana University - Bloomington to be the most popular school for general business/commerce students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at IU Bloomington take out is $26,667. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $517.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at Indiana University - Bloomington

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis is a great place for general business/commerce students. IUPUI is a very large public school located in the large city of Indianapolis.

After completing their degree, general business graduates from IUPUI carry an average student debt load of $25,795. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $160, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis

#3

DeVry University - Illinois

Naperville, IL

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means DeVry University - Illinois is a great place for general business/commerce students. DeVry University - Illinois is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Naperville.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at DeVry University - Illinois take out is $33,434.

Full General Business/Commerce at DeVry University - Illinois Report

#4

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#5

Ball State University

Muncie, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Ball State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Ball State is a large public school located in the city of Muncie.

After completing their degree, general business graduates from Ball State carry an average student debt load of $23,721. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $271, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

University of Wisconsin - Whitewater did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general business/commerce students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the town of Whitewater, UW - Whitewater is a public college with a large student population.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at UW - Whitewater take out is $24,262.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general business/commerce students. It came in at #7 on the list. IWU is a large private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Marion.

General Business majors at IWU take out an average of $24,250 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global

Purdue University Fort Wayne landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general business/commerce programs. PFW is a medium-sized public school located in the large city of Fort Wayne.

On average, general business graduates from PFW take out $19,989 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full General Business/Commerce at Purdue University Fort Wayne Report

University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general business/commerce students. It came in at #9 on the list. UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the city of Madison.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at UW - Madison take out is $50,847.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at University of Wisconsin - Madison

Indiana University - Southeast landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general business/commerce programs. Located in the suburb of New Albany, Indiana University - Southeast is a public college with a small student population.

On average, general business graduates from Indiana University - Southeast take out $18,400 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at Indiana University - Southeast

Macomb Community College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Warren, Macomb Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, general business majors at Macomb Community College accumulate an average of around $4,802 in student debt.

Full General Business/Commerce at Macomb Community College Report

Indiana University - South Bend did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general business/commerce students. It came in at #12 on the list. Indiana University - South Bend is a small public school located in the midsize city of South Bend.

While working on their degree, general business majors at Indiana University - South Bend accumulate an average of around $19,949 in student debt.

Full General Business/Commerce at Indiana University - South Bend Report

Grand Valley State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general business/commerce students. It came in at #13 on the list. GVSU is a very large public school located in the suburb of Allendale.

After completing their degree, general business graduates from GVSU carry an average student debt load of $25,575.

Full General Business/Commerce at Grand Valley State University Report

#14

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

With a ranking of #14, Michigan State University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for general business/commerce students. Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public school with a very large student population.

While working on their degree, general business majors at Michigan State accumulate an average of around $78,686 in student debt.

Read More…

#14

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, IN

University of Notre Dame did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for general business/commerce students. It came in at #14 on the list. Notre Dame is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Notre Dame.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at Notre Dame take out is $20,500.

Full General Business/Commerce at University of Notre Dame Report

Indiana University - Kokomo landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular general business/commerce programs. Located in the small city of Kokomo, IU Kokomo is a public college with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at IU Kokomo take out is $20,750.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at Indiana University - Kokomo

#17

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Evanston.

While working on their degree, general business majors at Northwestern accumulate an average of around $76,735 in student debt.

Full General Business/Commerce at Northwestern University Report

#18

Davenport University

Grand Rapids, MI

Davenport University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the suburb of Grand Rapids, Davenport University is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.

The average amount in student loans that general business majors at Davenport University take out is $25,972.

Read More…

#19

Roosevelt University

Chicago, IL

Roosevelt University ranked #19 on this year’s Most Popular Business & Commerce Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Roosevelt is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

Read full report on General Business/Commerce at Roosevelt University

Honorable Mentions

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

Rank College Location
20 Indiana Institute of Technology Fort Wayne, IN
21 Indiana University - Northwest Gary, IN
22 Grand Rapids Community College Grand Rapids, MI
23 Wright State University - Main Campus Dayton, OH
24 Saint Xavier University Chicago, IL
24 Lake Forest College Lake Forest, IL
26 Oakland University Rochester Hills, MI

Best General Business/Commerce Colleges by State

Explore the best general business/commerce schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 1,060
Ohio 563
Illinois 877
Indiana 5,636
Wisconsin 526

One of 21 majors within the business area of study, general business/commerce has other similar majors worth exploring.

General Business Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Business/Commerce 56,779

Majors Similar to General Business

Related Major Annual Graduates
Business Administration & Management 403,753
Accounting 93,982
Finance & Financial Management 54,690
Marketing 52,078
Management Sciences & Quantitative Methods 48,037

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 U.S. Consulate General Munich.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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