Best colleges for finance in Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranks first in Illinois for finance value (#4 nationally, value score 91.1): graduates earn $119,978 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $13,042 a year.
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition · Source: College Scorecard field of study, reporting year 2025 · 17 Illinois colleges ranked · Updated November 4, 2026
Best finance colleges in Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranks first in Illinois for finance value (#4 nationally, value score 91.1): graduates earn $119,978 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $13,042 a year. 17 Illinois colleges qualify. At the median one, finance graduates earn $81,562 and the average net price is $19,385 a year.
Source: U.S. College Scorecard field of study, 2025
What the data shows
Key findings
- 17 Illinois colleges qualify. At the median one, finance graduates earn $81,562 and the average net price is $19,385 a year.
- The lowest average net price among them is at Northeastern Illinois University: $9,377 a year.
- Median earnings
- $81,562
- National: $77,916
- Median net price
- $19,385
- National: $17,502
- Median federal debt
- $20,000
- finance graduates
- Public colleges
- 7 of 17
- in this list
17 colleges
The Illinois ranking
Ordered by the national value score; the national rank is shown with each college. Earnings are medians 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
- Rank in Illinois 1
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL · Public · #4 nationally
91.1Value- Earnings
- $119,978
- Net price
- $13,042
- Federal debt
- $16,750
- Graduation rate
- 86%
- Earnings
- $83,218
- Net price
- $9,540
- Federal debt
- $13,500
- Graduation rate
- 61%
- Earnings
- $86,511
- Net price
- $14,505
- Federal debt
- $15,085
- Graduation rate
- 48%
- Earnings
- $85,326
- Net price
- $17,829
- Federal debt
- $16,147
- Graduation rate
- 67%
- Rank in Illinois 5
Bloomington, IL · Private nonprofit · #78 nationally
63.4Value- Earnings
- $101,609
- Net price
- $27,863
- Federal debt
- $23,250
- Graduation rate
- 73%
- Earnings
- $98,583
- Net price
- $24,987
- Federal debt
- $24,375
- Graduation rate
- 73%
- Rank in Illinois 7
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · #95 nationally
60.1Value- Earnings
- $93,719
- Net price
- $27,308
- Federal debt
- $19,500
- Graduation rate
- 67%
- Rank in Illinois 8
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · #133 nationally
53.9Value- Earnings
- $89,001
- Net price
- $36,340
- Federal debt
- $20,500
- Graduation rate
- 72%
- Earnings
- $77,436
- Net price
- $19,385
- Federal debt
- $15,000
- Graduation rate
- 61%
- Rank in Illinois 10
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · #165 nationally
50.0Value- Earnings
- $75,180
- Net price
- $10,171
- Federal debt
- $21,500
- Graduation rate
- 55%
- Earnings
- $70,704
- Net price
- $12,717
- Federal debt
- $13,000
- Graduation rate
- 50%
- Rank in Illinois 12
North Central College-Illinois
Naperville, IL · Private nonprofit · #175 nationally
47.8Value- Earnings
- $81,562
- Net price
- $22,836
- Federal debt
- $21,500
- Graduation rate
- 62%
- Earnings
- $64,022
- Net price
- $9,377
- Federal debt
- $12,725
- Graduation rate
- 25%
- Earnings
- $76,433
- Net price
- $23,165
- Federal debt
- $20,750
- Graduation rate
- 64%
- Earnings
- $77,976
- Net price
- $22,469
- Federal debt
- $27,000
- Graduation rate
- 73%
- Rank in Illinois 16
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
Carbondale, IL · Public · #254 nationally
35.3Value- Earnings
- $67,349
- Net price
- $12,554
- Federal debt
- $22,000
- Graduation rate
- 59%
- Earnings
- $69,720
- Net price
- $21,512
- Federal debt
- Not reported
- Graduation rate
- 34%
Method: the same value score as the national finance ranking (earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate, each a national percentile). Data: College Scorecard, reporting year 2025; 2026–27 edition, verified Nov 2026.
Questions about finance colleges in Illinois
What are the best colleges for finance in Illinois?
By CollegesRef value score, the top 3 Illinois colleges for finance are University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (value score 91.1), University of Illinois at Chicago (value score 73.7) and Northern Illinois University (value score 65.3). The score weighs graduate earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate.
Which Illinois college has the highest earnings for finance graduates?
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: its finance graduates have median earnings of $119,978 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
What is the most affordable finance college in Illinois on this list?
Northeastern Illinois University has the lowest average net price of the ranked Illinois colleges, $9,377 a year after grants. A family's own price depends on income and aid.
How many Illinois colleges are ranked for finance?
17 Illinois colleges have a finance bachelor's program with enough graduates and reported earnings, plus a published net price and graduation rate. Ranks shown are national; the state rank is their order within Illinois.