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2026 Best Value Food Science Schools in Illinois

[Food Science](/majors/agriculture-ag-operations/food-science-technology/food-science/) programs reward a close look at where your money goes furthest. The schools below stand out for delivering a strong food science education at a price that pays off.

To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 2 schools on the balance of cost and outcomes for food science students.

What’s on this page:

• Best Value Food Science Schools in Illinois

2026 Best Value Food Science Schools in Illinois

If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the food science degrees they offer, see the list below.

Best Value Food Science Schools

1

University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign
Champaign, IL

$18,267 In-State Tuition & Fees

$19,000 Avg Student Debt

$81,054 Median Earnings (10yr)

Leading the list is University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign, our #1 best value for food science in Illinois. University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign is a very large public school located in the city of Champaign. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $18,267, while out-of-state students pay about $40,096. Students borrow a median of $19,000 to complete the food science program here. Food Science graduates of University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign earn a median of $65,432 early in their careers. That is a strong return on a $19,000 median debt. Roughly 42% of applicants are accepted.

2

Illinois Institute Of Technology
Chicago, IL

$52,202 In-State Tuition & Fees

$26,774 Avg Student Debt

$82,592 Median Earnings (10yr)

Illinois Institute Of Technology came in at #2 on our 2026 list of the best value food science schools. Illinois Institute Of Technology is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $52,202. Food Science graduates carry a median of $26,774 in student loans. Early-career food science graduates make about $71,315. That is a strong return on a $26,774 median debt. The acceptance rate is 55%.

View All Food Science Rankings >

Notes and References

This ranking is produced by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).

Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 2 schools evaluated.

*Averages shown above reflect the top 1 ranked schools only.

• 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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.