Computer Science is an excellent field to study in Illinois.
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) has been ranked by the US News as the number one university in Illinois, ahead of Northwestern and the University of Chicago. It’s our top recommendation for you.
However, getting into the CS program at UIUC is challenging due to the competitive admission requirement.
Nevertheless, that doesn’t have to be a discouragement. There are, in fact, a few other great universities and colleges you can opt for to study computer science in Illinois.
We have ranked the best options for you in this article.
List of the best schools to study Computer Science in Illinois
Looking to study computer science or any IT program in Illinois, we’ve combed through the university and institution review boards for Illinois and these are our top recommendations for you:
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- University of Chicago
- Northwestern University
- Knox College
- Bradley University
- Loyola University Chicago
- Augustana College
- DePaul University
- University of Illinois Springfield
Here’s why:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Admission Requirement Page
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Tuition Details page
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public university with more than 7,518 bachelor’s degree candidates enrolled. With an acceptance rate of 61 percent, the university is one of the top options for aspiring IT professionals.
The public research university in Illinois is known as the flagship institution of the University of Illinois System with campuses located in Champaign and Urbana.
UCIC has 16 schools and colleges and offers more than 150 undergraduate and over 100 graduate programs of study.
The interesting part is their Research Park is home to innovation centers for over 90 start-up companies and multinational corporations. These include Capital One, Dow, State Farm, Abbott, AbbVie, Caterpillar, and Yahoo, among others, making it a solid option for students who want to major in Computer science and technology programs.
University of Chicago
Another recommended university for students planning to study computer science in Illinois is the University of Chicago. The private not-for-profit university is based in Chicago, Illinois with an enrollment of over 1,736 bachelor’s degree candidates.
Getting into this university is quite competitive with an acceptance rate of 8 percent, but if you do manage to get it, you enjoy top-of-the-line education and exposure to the IT landscape at Illinois.
The private research university sits among the top-ten universities that have been ranked in various national and international reviews.
Unichicago also features its College, various graduate programs, and interdisciplinary committees organized into five academic research divisions and seven professional schools.
The university is prominent for its reputation in art and science, its Pritzker School of Medicine, the Booth School of Business, the Law School, the School of Social Service Administration, and the Harris School of Public Policy Studies.
The SAT Range is between 1480 and 1580 while the ACT Range is between 32 and 35.
Illinois Institute of Technology
- Illinois Institute of Technology Admission Requirement Page
- Illinois Institute of Technology Tuition Details page
This private Ph.D.-granting research university is one of the best places you can think of when it comes to studying computer science in Chicago, Illinois. It has programs in engineering, science, psychology, architecture, business, communications, industrial technology, information technology, design, and law.
The Illinois Institute of Technology has an enrollment of over 471 bachelor’s degree candidates with an acceptance rate of 54 percent.
The most popular majors in IIT include Engineering (33 percent), Computer Science (25 percent), Legal (11 percent), Business Management (7 percent), and Architecture (5 percent)
Northwestern University
The computer science department at Northwestern University is growing rapidly in recent years, ranking 30th in the nation. This is a private research university in Evanston that is ideal for computer science students. They have 8,000 undergraduate students with a 6:1 student-to-faculty ratio, which hints at their personal educational experience.
The price at Northwestern can be a little reigning just like the case of the University of Chicago (above $55,000) but they cushion the effect of high cost with available grants instead of loans.
Northwestern University is a fantastic choice for computer science majors as 95 percent of graduates here are employed, freelancing, or furthering education in the IT field.
Knox College
If you are particularly looking for a private not-for-profit university based in Galesburg, Illinois to study computer science, then Knox college may be your best option. The acceptance rate here is 71 percent and they have an enrollment of over 355 bachelor’s degree candidates.
The college is a four-year coeducational private liberal arts categorized as a more selective institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
U.S. News & World Report has ranked Knox college as the 71st among liberal arts colleges in the 2017 edition of America’s Best Colleges.
The influential book, Colleges That Changes Lives by Loren Pope, also listed this school alongside 40 others.
Knox college is a wonderful option for computer science students pursuing academic programs in Illinois.
Bradley University
Bradley University is located in Peoria, Illinois and the highest degree type offered here is a master’s degree.
With 52 Compsci degrees awarded and 15.4 percent growth in graduates, Bradley University is a private not-for-profit school ideal for computer science students who want a medium-sized student population.
The starting salary of graduates who received degrees from the comp sci program at Bradley is $50,879.
There are also scholarship options to study computer science at Bradley university.
Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a popular student choice in Illinois but it particularly stands out as one of the best places for students who want major in computer science.
The highest degree type awarded is a master’s degree and the university is the 28th most popular in the whole of Illinois.
The private not-for-profit university has a large student population and ranks 147 out of 2,241 schools nationwide. In the most recent academic year data, about 11 computer science students graduated with this degree, and the review points that the university’s comp sci department stands out among most others in Illinois.
Augustana College
If you are looking to study computer science in Rock Island City, Illinois, then we see no other better institution to recommend than Augustana College. The highest degree type awarded is a bachelor’s degree and the median starting salary for graduates with this degree is $49,729.
It is a small private not-for-profit college that ranks 314 out of 2,241 colleges nationwide means and about 21 computer science students graduated with this degree at Augustana in the most recent year we have data available.
If you want to study in Rock Island city, this is a top choice as far as the comp sci program goes.
DePaul University
DePaul University in Chicago is another wonderful pick for students planning to study computer science in Illinois. The four-year university offers 3 Computer Science degree programs.
The most renowned aspect of this school, we believe, is the value for money you get out of the academic programs. It’s little wonder why the US News and World Reports rank DePaul 62nd in best value schools.
With an estimated student population of 23,799, DePaul’s acceptance rate is 70 percent with a graduate rate of 68 percent.
The Computer Science Degrees offered here are Bachelor’s, master’s, and Ph.D. and they have GRE Requirements for Computer Science Grad Students.
The Computer Science Undergraduate Tuition at DePaul University is $42,189 per academic year and the Graduate Tuition is $900 per credit hour.
University of Illinois Springfield
- University of Illinois Springfield Admission Requirement Page
- University of Illinois Springfield Tuition Details page
This is another public university you can consider for computer science academic programs in Illinois, it has a total enrollment of 3,944 students and offers 49 bachelor’s degrees, 37 minors, 51 master’s degrees, and one doctorate.
The University of Illinois Springfield is known for its high programs in computer science, business administration, psychology, biology, and accounting.
With an acceptance rate of 77 percent and a graduation rate of 54 percent, the university offers only Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science.
The university considers GRE Requirements for Computer Science Grad Students, but only for those with a GPA under 3.0. if you’ve not already possess a graduate degree, you also have to provide GRE requirements.
The Computer Science Undergraduate Tuition at this university is $313.50 per hour for in-state while out-of-state students pay $631 per hour.
We recommend BS in Information Systems Security, MS in Computer Science, and BS in Computer science as the best programs for IT students at the University of Illinois Springfield.
Finally
As mentioned earlier, Computer Science is a good choice for a degree.
You can find many universities in Illinois for your course. But suggest you should choose any of the universities reviewed in this post. They are among the best Universities in Illinois as long as comp sci programs are concerned.
The best part? No matter your area of interest, each of these universities and colleges offers a degree that matches.
You are sure to find what you love.
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