2026 Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois
[Astronomy](/majors/physical-sciences/astronomy-and-astrophysics/astronomy/) programs reward a close look at where your money goes furthest. The schools below stand out for delivering a strong astronomy education at a price that pays off.
For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 3 schools to find the best return on investment for astronomy students.
What’s on this page:
2026 Best Value Astronomy Schools in Illinois
If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the astronomy degrees they offer, see the list below.
Best Value Astronomy Schools
Our analysis ranked University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign the best value for a degree in astronomy in Illinois. Set in the city of Champaign, University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign is a very large public institution. In-state tuition and fees average $18,267, compared with $40,096 for out-of-state students. Typical student debt for astronomy graduates is $20,778. Early-career astronomy graduates make about $57,461. Set against $20,778 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign admits about 42% of applicants.
A rank of #2 makes University Of Chicago one of the best values for astronomy. University Of Chicago is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago. In-state tuition and fees average $69,324. Students borrow a median of $15,854 to complete the astronomy program here. Astronomy graduates of University Of Chicago earn a median of $81,002 early in their careers. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. University Of Chicago admits about 4% of applicants.
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published 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 · 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.
