26 Best colleges for Media Studies in Illinois

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in Illinois ranked based on their research performance in Media Studies. A graph of 180K citations received by 12.1K academic papers made by 26 universities in Illinois was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University of Chicago

Chicago

For Media Studies

#9 in the United States

#11 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 4%
Average SAT: 1545
Average ACT: 35
Net Price: $28,060

2. University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign

Champaign

For Media Studies

#11 in the United States

#13 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 42%
Average SAT: 1415
Average ACT: 32
Receiving Aid: 64%

3. Northwestern University

Evanston

For Media Studies

#29 in the United States

#32 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 8%
Average SAT: 1540
Average ACT: 34
Net Price: $26,830

4. University of Illinois at Chicago

Chicago

For Media Studies

#38 in the United States

#42 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Average SAT: 1240
Average ACT: 28
Receiving Aid: 80%

5. Loyola University Chicago

Chicago

For Media Studies

#99 in the United States

#115 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 82%
Average SAT: 1265
Average ACT: 30
Net Price: $39,147

6. Southern Illinois University - Carbondale

Carbondale

For Media Studies

#105 in the United States

#122 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 87%
Average SAT: 1030
Average ACT: 22
Receiving Aid: 98%

7. Northern Illinois University

DeKalb

For Media Studies

#110 in the United States

#128 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Receiving Aid: 99%
Average Aid: $14,387
Enrollment: 15,414

8. DePaul University

Chicago

For Media Studies

#111 in the United States

#129 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 76%
Average SAT: 1235
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $34,135

9. Illinois State University

Normal

For Media Studies

#180 in the United States

#210 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 88%
Average SAT: 1100
Average ACT: 24
Receiving Aid: 98%

10. Wheaton College - Illinois

Wheaton

For Media Studies

#223 in the United States

#254 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 87%
Average SAT: 1365
Average ACT: 30
Net Price: $31,356

11. Lake Forest College

Lake Forest

For Media Studies

#237 in the United States

#270 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 57%
Average SAT: 1292
Average ACT: 30
Net Price: $31,225

12. Illinois Institute of Technology

Chicago

For Media Studies

#253 in the United States

#287 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 55%
Average SAT: 1310
Average ACT: 29
Net Price: $24,796

13. Augustana College

Rock Island

For Media Studies

#287 in the United States

#325 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Average SAT: 1150
Average ACT: 25
Net Price: $24,714

14. Eastern Illinois University

Charleston

For Media Studies

#288 in the United States

#326 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 65%
Average SAT: 985
Receiving Aid: 96%
Average Aid: $12,960

15. Bradley University

Peoria

For Media Studies

#325 in the United States

#363 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Net Price: $23,787
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $30,808

16. Columbia College Chicago

Chicago

For Media Studies

#346 in the United States

#384 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Net Price: $29,473
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $22,780

17. Western Illinois University

Macomb

For Media Studies

#350 in the United States

#388 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Receiving Aid: 55%
Average Aid: $14,994
Enrollment: 6,332

18. Northeastern Illinois University

Chicago

For Media Studies

#358 in the United States

#396 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Receiving Aid: 90%
Average Aid: $12,876
Enrollment: 5,734

19. Roosevelt University

Chicago

For Media Studies

#361 in the United States

#400 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 97%
Average SAT: 1035
Average ACT: 22
Net Price: $22,366

20. Illinois College

Jacksonville

For Media Studies

#377 in the United States

#416 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 78%
Average SAT: 1032
Average ACT: 23
Net Price: $17,375

21. Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville

Edwardsville

For Media Studies

#396 in the United States

#435 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 97%
Average SAT: 1070
Average ACT: 24
Receiving Aid: 95%

22. Illinois Wesleyan University

Bloomington

For Media Studies

#431 in the United States

#471 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 39%
Average SAT: 1230
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $28,644

23. Knox College

Galesburg

For Media Studies

#499 in the United States

#549 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Average SAT: 1310
Average ACT: 27
Net Price: $25,709

24. School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago

For Media Studies

#503 in the United States

#553 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Net Price: $55,631
Receiving Aid: 99%
Average Aid: $20,050

25. North Central College

Naperville

For Media Studies

#562 in the United States

#617 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Average SAT: 1183
Average ACT: 27
Net Price: $23,276

26. Monmouth College

Monmouth

For Media Studies

#577 in the United States

#634 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Average SAT: 1105
Average ACT: 24
Net Price: $17,768

Closest to Illinois states to learn Media Studies

State	Universities Unis	Best university country rank Best uni rank
Indiana	16	20
Missouri	10	4
Iowa	7	27
Kentucky	6	56
Wisconsin	11	5
Tennessee	9	73
Ohio	19	16
Michigan	17	2
Arkansas	5	76
Minnesota	14	26
Mississippi	3	121
Kansas	7	51
Alabama	8	54
Virginia	15	45
Georgia	13	52
North Carolina	19	28
Oklahoma	3	66
Nebraska	4	130
South Carolina	9	39
Pennsylvania	36	10
South Dakota	3	319
District of Columbia	5	32
Louisiana	6	65
Maryland	14	21
New York	67	1
New Jersey	18	22
North Dakota	2	193
Connecticut	12	23
Texas	26	6
Vermont	4	143
Colorado	10	49
Massachusetts	34	24
Rhode Island	5	168
Florida	15	42
New Hampshire	4	90
Maine	6	194
Utah	5	68
Arizona	3	19
Idaho	3	219
Oregon	9	80
Washington	12	7
California	54	8
Hawaii	3	86