2023 Best Value Computer Science Master's Degree Schools in Illinois
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Prices
There are so many computer science 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 and bootcamps that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Computer Science Degree Search has created its Best Value Computer Science Master's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. This report analyzed 22 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best value master's degree programs for computer science students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
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Top Value Computer Science Master's Degree Schools in Illinois
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to be the best value school for computer science students who want to pursue a master’s degree in Illinois. This large public school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 910 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
UIUC graduate students pay an average of $30,862 in tuition and fees each year.
UIUC does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 90% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
UIUC also made our Best Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list, coming in at #1.
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Illinois State University is a great place for computer science students working on their master’s degree who want the most bang for their educational buck. Illinois State is a public institution located in Normal, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 32 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Illinois State graduate students pay an average of $11,773 in tuition and fees each year.
One thing to take note of is that Illinois State does offer online graduate classes in some areas. In 2019-2020 about 81% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Out of the 22 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s value ranking, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, the fairly large public school awarded 20 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
SIUE graduate students pay an average of $9,316 in tuition and fees each year.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since SIUE does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 86% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Read full report on Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
The excellent master’s degree programs at Western Illinois University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best value computer science schools in Illinois. WIU is a public institution located in Macomb, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 52 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
WIU graduate students pay an average of $12,182 in tuition and fees each year.
WIU does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 71% took at least some of their classes online.
Out of the 22 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s value ranking, DePaul University landed the # 5 spot on the list. DePaul University is a large private not-for-profit school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 521 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at DePaul are $18,341 per year.
DePaul does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 96% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, DePaul is ranked #4 for overall quality in Illinois.
Governors State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for computer science students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in University Park, Illinois, the small public school handed out 77 master’s degree awards in 2020-2021.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at GSU are $14,674 a year.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since GSU does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. During the 2019-2020 year, about 35% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
University of Illinois at Springfield ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Springfield, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 174 students in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UIS are $16,757 per year.
UIS does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 96% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Northeastern Illinois University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree computer science programs. Northeastern Illinois University is located in Chicago, Illinois and has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 27 master’s degrees to qualified students.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Northeastern Illinois University are $17,375 a year.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Northeastern Illinois University does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 99% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Lewis University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. This medium-sized private not-for-profit school is located in Romeoville, Illinois, and it awarded 101 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Lewis graduate students pay an average of $14,960 in tuition and fees each year.
Lewis does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 85% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree computer science programs. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out master’s degrees to 213 students in 2020-2021.
UIC graduate students pay an average of $28,468 in tuition and fees each year.
Online graduate courses are available at UIC, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 95% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #11, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on this year’s best value schools for computer science students working on their master’s degree. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 27 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Loyola Chicago are $19,894 per 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. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 92% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Loyola Chicago not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #5 on our Best Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list.
With a ranking of #12, Northern Illinois University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for computer science students working on their master’s degree. Located in Dekalb, Illinois, the fairly large public school awarded 118 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
NIU graduate students pay an average of $11,390 in tuition and fees each year.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at NIU. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 43% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Bradley University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Bradley is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Peoria, Illinois. It awarded 18 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Bradley are $17,400 per year.
One thing to take note of is that Bradley does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 95% took at least some of their classes online.
North Central College ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. North Central is a private not-for-profit institution located in Naperville, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 2 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
North Central graduate students pay an average of $15,822 in tuition and fees each year.
Online graduate courses are available at North Central, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 70% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for computer science students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. SIUC is a fairly large public school situated in Carbondale, Illinois. It awarded 18 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at SIUC are $33,064 a year.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at SIUC. In fact, around 24% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
Dominican University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Dominican U is a small private not-for-profit school situated in River Forest, Illinois. It awarded 2 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Dominican U are $20,413 per year.
One thing to take note of is that Dominican U does offer online graduate classes in some areas. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 89% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #17, Saint Xavier University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for computer science students working on their master’s degree. Saint Xavier University is a small private not-for-profit school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 6 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at SXU are $15,450 per year.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at SXU. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 63% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
With a ranking of #18, DeVry University - Illinois did quite well on this year’s best value schools for computer science students working on their master’s degree. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the large private for-profit school awarded 91 diplomas to qualifed master’s degree students in 2020-2021.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at DeVry University - Illinois are $17,552 a year.
Online graduate courses are available at DeVry University - Illinois, 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 97% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Illinois Institute of Technology ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out master’s degrees to 392 students in 2020-2021.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Illinois Tech are $30,822 a year.
One thing to take note of is that Illinois Tech does offer online graduate classes in some areas. In 2019-2020 about 42% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Northwestern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for computer science students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list. Northwestern is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Evanston, Illinois. It awarded 168 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Northwestern are $56,567 a year.
Northwestern does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 2% took at least some of their classes online.
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.
Roosevelt University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for computer science students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #21 on the list. Roosevelt is located in Chicago, Illinois and has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 10 master’s degrees to qualified students.
Roosevelt graduate students pay an average of $21,605 in tuition and fees each year.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at Roosevelt. During the 2019-2020 year, about 44% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
University of Chicago landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree computer science programs. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 285 master’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UChicago are $63,936 per year.
UChicago did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Computer Science Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois list.
Best Value Computer Science Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region
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Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 22 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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