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Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Prices

9 Schools Ranked
$14,963 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$25,427 Avg Student Debt*

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which nursing program is right 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. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school or bootcamp that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Nursing Degree Search has developed this Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois ranking. This report analyzed 9 schools in Illinois to see which ones offered the best value graduate certificate programs for nursing students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. 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.

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

Top Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois

Learn more about these excellent schools below:

#1

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois
74 Total Awards
$11,773 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Illinois State University the best value school in Illinois for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Illinois State is located in Normal, Illinois and has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 74 graduate certificates to qualified students.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Illinois State are $11,773 per year.

Illinois State 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. During the 2019-2020 year, about 81% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Illinois State did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois list.

Read More…

6 Total Awards
$9,316 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a great place for nursing students working on their graduate certificate who want the most bang for their educational buck. Edwardsville, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out graduate certificates to 6 students in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at SIUE are $9,316 a year.

SIUE does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. In fact, around 86% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

SIUE also took the #5 spot in our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois rankings.

Full Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Report

#3

University of St Francis

Joliet, Illinois
27 Total Awards
$13,839 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of St Francis is a great place for nursing students working on their graduate certificate who want the most bang for their educational buck. University of St Francis is a small private not-for-profit school located in Joliet, Illinois that handed out 27 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

University of Saint Francis graduate students pay an average of $13,839 in tuition and fees each year.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at University of Saint Francis. In fact, around 89% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

University of Saint Francis did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois list.

Full University of St Francis Report

#4

Lewis University

Romeoville, Illinois
14 Total Awards
$14,960 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Lewis University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois list. Lewis is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Romeoville, Illinois. It awarded 14 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Lewis are $14,960 per year.

If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Lewis does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In fact, around 85% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Lewis not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois list.

Full Lewis University Report

#5

Bradley University

Peoria, Illinois
30 Total Awards
$17,400 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bradley University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois list. This medium-sized private not-for-profit school is located in Peoria, Illinois, and it awarded 30 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

Bradley graduate students pay an average of $17,400 in tuition and fees each year.

Bradley 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. 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.

Bradley did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois list.

Full Bradley University Report

#6

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, Illinois
6 Total Awards
$12,190 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, Olivet Nazarene University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in Bourbonnais, Illinois, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 6 diplomas to qualifed graduate certificate students in 2020-2021.

Olivet Nazarene graduate students pay an average of $12,190 in tuition and fees each year.

You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Olivet Nazarene. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 97% took at least some of their classes online.

Read full report on Olivet Nazarene University

#7

North Park University

Chicago, Illinois
2 Total Awards
$14,184 Average Tuition & Fees

North Park University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value graduate certificate nursing programs. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 2 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at North Park are $14,184 a year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at North Park. In fact, around 92% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Read More…

#8

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, Illinois
9 Total Awards
$19,894 Average Tuition & Fees

Loyola University Chicago came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Illinois ranking. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 9 graduate certificate awards in 2020-2021.

Loyola Chicago graduate students pay an average of $19,894 in tuition and fees each year.

Some students may be able to take online graduate classes at Loyola Chicago. In fact, around 92% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Full Loyola University Chicago Report

#9

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois
2 Total Awards
$18,341 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, DePaul University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 2 graduate certificate awards in 2020-2021.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at DePaul are $18,341 per year.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at DePaul. During the 2019-2020 year, about 96% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Full DePaul University Report

Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

View Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools Nationwide >

Notes and References

Footnotes

*These averages are for the top 9 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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