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Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Prices

$25,756 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$25,427 Avg Student Debt*

Today's business students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools and bootcamps with offerings that you might find attractive.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Business Degree Central has developed this <nil> ranking.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

Top Value Business Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois

Learn more about these excellent schools below:

#1

Concordia University, Chicago

River Forest, Illinois
23 Total Awards
#8 in Quality in Illinois
$9,378 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Concordia University, Chicago to be the best value school for business students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in Illinois. Located in River Forest, Illinois, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 23 diplomas to qualifed graduate certificate students in 2020-2021.

Concordia University, Chicago graduate students pay an average of $9,378 in tuition and fees each year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Concordia University, Chicago. In 2019-2020 about 98% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Read More…

#2

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois
63 Total Awards
#9 in Quality in Illinois
$11,773 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Illinois State University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s list. Illinois State is located in Normal, Illinois and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 63 graduate certificates to qualified students.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Illinois State are $11,773 a year.

Illinois State does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 81% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Full Illinois State University Report

#3

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois
24 Total Awards
#6 in Quality in Illinois
$12,182 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Western Illinois University. It ranked #3 on our list. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized public school located in Macomb, Illinois that handed out 24 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at WIU are $12,182 a year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at WIU. During the 2019-2020 year, about 71% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Read More…

#4

University of St Francis

Joliet, Illinois
25 Total Awards
#5 in Quality in Illinois
$13,839 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of St Francis. It ranked #4 on our list. University of Saint Francis is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Joliet, Illinois. It awarded 25 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at University of Saint Francis are $13,839 per year.

You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at University of Saint Francis. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 89% took at least some of their classes online.

University of Saint Francis also made our list, coming in at #5.

Full University of St Francis Report

#5

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois
86 Total Awards
#4 in Quality in Illinois
$19,894 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 10 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s value ranking, Loyola University Chicago landed the # 5 spot on the list. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 86 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Loyola Chicago are $19,894 a year.

Online graduate courses are available at Loyola Chicago, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 92% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Loyola Chicago also made our list, coming in at #4.

Read full report on Loyola University Chicago

#6

DeVry University - Illinois

Chicago, Illinois
701 Total Awards
#7 in Quality in Illinois
$17,552 Average Tuition & Fees

DeVry University - Illinois did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for business students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the large private for-profit school handed out 701 graduate certificate awards in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at DeVry University - Illinois are $17,552 a year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at DeVry University - Illinois. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 97% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Full DeVry University - Illinois Report

#7

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois
198 Total Awards
#1 in Quality in Illinois
$63,936 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Chicago came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the ranking. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 198 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UChicago are $63,936 a year.

UChicago did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our list.

Read full report on University of Chicago

#8

Benedictine University

Lisle, Illinois
2 Total Awards
#10 in Quality in Illinois
$19,640 Average Tuition & Fees

Benedictine University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for business students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #8 on the list. Benedictine U is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Lisle, Illinois. It awarded 2 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Benedictine U graduate students pay an average of $19,640 in tuition and fees each year.

If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Benedictine U does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 100% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Read full report on Benedictine University

#9

Elmhurst University

Elmhurst, Illinois
12 Total Awards
#3 in Quality in Illinois
$32,800 Average Tuition & Fees

Elmhurst University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for business students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #9 on the list. Elmhurst, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out graduate certificates to 12 students in 2020-2021.

Elmhurst graduate students pay an average of $32,800 in tuition and fees each year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Elmhurst. In 2019-2020 about 64% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Elmhurst did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our list.

Read More…

#10

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois
28 Total Awards
#2 in Quality in Illinois
$56,567 Average Tuition & Fees

Northwestern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for business students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #10 on the list. Northwestern is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 28 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Northwestern are $56,567 a year. By the time they get their graduate certificate, students from this school have racked up an average of $21,679 in student loans.

Online graduate courses are available at Northwestern, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2019-2020 year, about 2% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Northwestern is ranked #2 for overall quality in Illinois.

Read full report on Northwestern University

Notes and References

Footnotes

*These averages are for the top 10 schools only.

References

  • 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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