Public · University

University of Illinois Chicago

Chicago, Illinois · Large city

#5 best value in Illinois
77.3%
Admit rate
$10,974
Avg net price
62%
Graduation rate
$68,740
Median earnings

University of Illinois Chicago is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Chicago, Illinois (large city setting), enrolling 22,170 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI).

PublicLarge · 22,170 undergradsLarge cityAccessible · 77% admitNCAA Division I without footballCold wintersSnowy

Will you get in?

See where your numbers land against University of Illinois Chicago's admitted students.

Admit rate
77.3%
SAT (mid 50%)
1130–1350
Avg GPA
3.47

Enter a test score to see where you land against University of Illinois Chicago's admitted students.

A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and University of Illinois Chicago's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.

About Chicago, Illinois

Chicago is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. The first known permanent settler in Chicago was a trader, Jean Baptiste Point du Sable. Du Sable was of African descent, perhaps born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (Haiti), and he established the settlement in the 1780s. He is commonly known as the "Founder of Chicago". Chicago has the third-largest gross metropolitan product in the United States—about $670.5 billion according to September 2017 estimates. The city has also been rated as having the most balanced economy in the United States, due to its high level of diversification. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
1 mile to Chicago, IL
To Great Lakes shore
2 miles
Nearest airport
8 miles to Chicago Midway (MDW) · major hub

How University of Illinois Chicago compares

Selectivity77.3%

More selective than 50% · #31 most selective of 58 in Illinois

SAT average1250

Higher than 70%

Graduation rate62%

Higher than 63% · #25 of 58 in Illinois

First-year retention80%

Higher than 63%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$68,740

Higher than 82% · #16 of 66 in Illinois

Average net price$10,974

Cheaper than 88% · #5 cheapest of 57 in Illinois

Median debt at graduation$16,704

Lower than 87%

Student–faculty ratio17 : 1

Lower than 23%

Undergraduate enrollment22,170

Larger than 96%

Percentiles compare University of Illinois Chicago with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Illinois.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

33,581students
  • Undergraduate22,17066%
  • Graduate11,41134%

Undergraduates by gender

22,170undergrads
  • Women11,71753%
  • Men10,45347%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White22%
  • Black8.2%
  • Hispanic36%
  • Asian21%
  • Other or multiracial12%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
22,170
Graduate enrollment
11,411
Student–faculty ratio
17 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
49%
First-generation students
44%
Students over 25
9%
Median family income
$33,726
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$131,589
Endowment
$680,971,470

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 4,647 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Illinois89%
  • Other U.S. states4.5%
  • International6.1%

Most first-years stay in state — University of Illinois Chicago draws overwhelmingly from Illinois.

6% came from outside the U.S. Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
77.3%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
1130–1350
SAT average
1250
SAT reading
570–670
SAT math
560–680
ACT composite
25–31
Average GPA
3.47

Cost

In-state tuition
$14,338
Out-of-state tuition
$29,884
Room & board
$16,500
Books & supplies
$1,400
Total cost of attendance
$27,521
Average net price
$10,974

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
62%
Graduated on time (4 years)
42%
First-year retention
80%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$53,218
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$68,740
Median debt at graduation
$16,704
Students with federal loans
22%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
64%

About 20% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
42%
Low-income (Pell)
61%
First-generation
60%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
3,489
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
16%
Housing charge (year)
$9,078
Meal plan (year)
$5,129
Application fee
$60
Athletics
NCAA Division I without football
Varsity athletes
409 (198 men · 211 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (9)

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)149
Soccer61
Swimming and Diving (combined)58
Baseball41
Basketball30
Softball22
Volleyball22
Tennis18
Golf8

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
3.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
89
Property offenses (2022–2024)
227

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 7 campuses (33,906 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

105reported offenses a year
30 violent a year76 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft
43
Burglary
32
Aggravated assault
11
Rape
9.3
Fondling
6.0
Robbery
3.7
Arson
1.0

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$7,529
$30–48k
$8,119
$48–75k
$10,921
$75–110k
$16,185
$110k+
$25,047

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$48,982

$10,921/year × about 4.5 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

69%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$5,398
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 69% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $5,398. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 4,179 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$68,740
Typical debt at graduation
$16,704
Debt vs. one year's pay
24%
Out-earn a HS grad
70%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.4 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Strong value

Graduates here tend to earn well relative to what they borrow — typical debt pays back fast, and most out-earn a high-school graduate.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$63,688
Men
$76,541

Men out-earn women by $12,853 (20%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
81°F
Winter low
20°F
Annual rain
34.4″
Annual snow
38.8″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.04.1JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Chicago Northerly IS, IL US station (2.4 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to University of Illinois Chicago

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare University of Illinois Chicago side by side →

Colleges near University of Illinois Chicago

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.