2026 Best Value Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication Schools in Illinois
[Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication](/majors/communication-journalism-media/public-relations-advertising/public-relations-advertising-and-applied-communication/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The best values balance affordable tuition against strong post-graduation earnings.
For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 3 schools to find the best return on investment for public relations, advertising, & applied communication students.
What’s on this page:
2026 Best Value Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication Schools in Illinois
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in public relations, advertising, & applied communication, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication Schools
Leading the list is Bradley University, our #1 best value for public relations, advertising, & applied communication in Illinois. Located in the city of Peoria, Bradley University is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $42,160. Students borrow a median of $26,819 to complete the public relations, advertising, & applied communication program here. Soon after graduation, public relations, advertising, & applied communication degree recipients from Bradley University generally make around $38,351. Set against $26,819 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. Bradley University admits about 77% of applicants.
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs the cost of a degree against the earnings graduates go on to achieve, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 3 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.
