2023 Best Business Schools in the Great Lakes Region
With all the business programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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. Also, there are a number of trade schools and bootcamp with offerings that you might find attractive.
The <nil> ranking is one of many tools that Business Degree Central has developed to help you make your educational decision.
View our full ranking methodology.
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Top Business Schools in the Great Lakes Region of the U.S.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our rankings named University of Notre Dame the best school in the Great Lakes Region for business students working on their degree.
On average, students take out $19,395 in loans while pursuing their degree. For those students on a 10-year repayment plan, the average payment due each month is around $578. Once they receive their degree, Notre Dame graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $58,860 during the early year of their career.
Out of the 234 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Chicago landed the # 2 spot on the list.
By the time they get their degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $15,217 in student loans. Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $708 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from UChicago, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $62,519 during the early years of their career.
Out of the 234 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the # 3 spot on the list.
On average, students take out $19,000 in loans while pursuing their degree. Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $576 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan. During the early years of their career, Northwestern graduates make an average of $69,538 annually.
The excellent programs at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best business schools in the Great Lakes Region .
On average, students take out $17,682 in loans while pursuing their degree. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $419, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from U-M, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $58,051 during the early years of their career.
Out of the 234 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Indiana University - Bloomington landed the # 5 spot on the list.
Degree recipients from IU Bloomington accumulate an average of $19,851 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $395 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan. During the early years of their career, IU Bloomington graduates make an average of $44,025 annually.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #6 on this year’s list.
On average, students take out $18,891 in loans while pursuing their degree. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $415, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan. Once they receive their degree, UIUC graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $53,270 during the early year of their career.
University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #7 spot in the rankings for the best business programs.
Degree recipients from UW - Madison accumulate an average of $20,865 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $336 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from UW - Madison, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $50,802 during the early years of their career.
Illinois Wesleyan University ranked #8 on this year’s list.
On average, students take out $23,212 in loans while pursuing their degree. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $401, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from Illinois Wesleyan, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $43,102 during the early years of their career.
Madison Area Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for business students. It came in at #9 on the list.
Degree recipients from Madison College accumulate an average of $19,738 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. Once they receive their degree, Madison College graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $40,202 during the early year of their career.
Milwaukee School of Engineering did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for business students. It came in at #10 on the list.
By the time they get their degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $32,296 in student loans. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $293, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan. Once they receive their degree, MSOE graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $63,379 during the early year of their career.
Kettering University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the ranking.
Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $313 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from Kettering, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $83,324 during the early years of their career.
Michigan State University ranked #12 on this year’s list.
Degree recipients from Michigan State accumulate an average of $24,447 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $428, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan. Once they receive their degree, Michigan State graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $47,302 during the early year of their career.
Marquette University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the ranking.
On average, students take out $21,711 in loans while pursuing their degree. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $485, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan. During the early years of their career, Marquette graduates make an average of $52,581 annually.
Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #14 spot in the rankings for the best business programs.
On average, students take out $19,291 in loans while pursuing their degree. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $358, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from Purdue, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $53,430 during the early years of their career.
Fox Valley Technical College ranked #15 on this year’s list.
Degree recipients from FVTC accumulate an average of $14,511 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.After graduating from FVTC, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $36,943 during the early years of their career.
Miami University - Hamilton ranked #16 on this year’s list.
Degree recipients from Miami University - Hamilton accumulate an average of $26,284 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $405 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan. Once they receive their degree, Miami University - Hamilton graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $39,907 during the early year of their career.
Butler University landed the #17 spot in the rankings for the best business programs.
On average, students take out $25,025 in loans while pursuing their degree.After graduating from Butler, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $67,108 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #18, Rasmussen University - Illinois did quite well on this year’s best schools for business students working.
On average, students take out $30,604 in loans while pursuing their degree. Those who take out this much in loans have to make a monthly payment of about $127 if they are on a 10-year repayment plan. Once they receive their degree, Rasmussen University - Illinois graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $41,940 during the early year of their career.
Rasmussen University - Wisconsin ranked #19 on this year’s list.
On average, students take out $30,604 in loans while pursuing their degree. For those students on a 10-year repayment plan, the average payment due each month is around $127. During the early years of their career, Rasmussen University - Wisconsin graduates make an average of $41,940 annually.
Miami University - Oxford did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for business students. It came in at #20 on the list.
By the time they get their degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $23,653 in student loans. If you borrow this amount, expect your monthly student loan payment to be around $490, assuming you are on a 10-year repayment plan.After graduating from Miami University - Oxford, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $43,521 during the early years of their career.
Southwest Wisconsin Technical College landed the #21 spot in the rankings for the best business programs.
Degree recipients from Southwest Tech accumulate an average of $13,030 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.After graduating from Southwest Tech, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $36,231 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #22, Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for business students working.
Degree recipients from Ohio State accumulate an average of $22,340 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. For those students on a 10-year repayment plan, the average payment due each month is around $272.After graduating from Ohio State, students go on to jobs where they make an average of $49,871 during the early years of their career.
Sinclair Community College ranked #23 on this year’s list.
Degree recipients from Sinclair Community College accumulate an average of $15,593 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. Once they receive their degree, Sinclair Community College graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $32,938 during the early year of their career.
University of Dayton did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for business students. It came in at #24 on the list.
Degree recipients from UDayton accumulate an average of $21,966 in student debt by the time they complete their degree. For those students on a 10-year repayment plan, the average payment due each month is around $549. Once they receive their degree, UDayton graduates enter the workforce, making an average salary of $51,595 during the early year of their career.
Augustana College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for business students. It came in at #25 on the list.
By the time they get their degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $25,410 in student loans. For those students on a 10-year repayment plan, the average payment due each month is around $321. During the early years of their career, Augustana graduates make an average of $35,627 annually.
Rest of the Top 15% Best Business Schools in the Great Lakes Region of the U.S.
Not only did these schools make the top 36 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Honorable Mentions
These schools also performed well in our best business schools ranking:
| Rank | School | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 37 | Northcentral Technical College | Wausau, WI |
| 38 | Bradley University | Peoria, IL |
| 39 | Taylor University | Upland, IN |
| 40 | Waukesha County Technical College | Pewaukee, WI |
| 41 | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, OH |
| 42 | Illinois State University | Normal, IL |
| 43 | Lakeshore Technical College | Cleveland, WI |
| 44 | University of Wisconsin - Platteville | Platteville, WI |
| 45 | Illinois Institute of Technology | Chicago, IL |
| 46 | University of Cincinnati - Clermont College | Batavia, OH |
| 47 | University of Wisconsin - River Falls | River Falls, WI |
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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