Best Master's in Elementary Education Programs in Illinois

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 100 master's degrees a year, one of the larger cohorts in the specialty. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

A master's degree earns its rank on program-appropriate signals, not undergraduate ones: established scale, local teacher pay, and institutional strength. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 25 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

A master's degree earns its rank on program-appropriate signals, not undergraduate ones: established scale, local teacher pay, and institutional strength. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 4 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. And the institution carries weight: its research standing and program accreditation, the factor we weigh most, are a clear strength.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

A master's degree earns its rank on program-appropriate signals, not undergraduate ones: established scale, local teacher pay, and institutional strength. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 17 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

A master's degree earns its rank on program-appropriate signals, not undergraduate ones: established scale, local teacher pay, and institutional strength. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 21 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 14 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 17 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 7 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 8 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 14 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into St. Louis, MO-IL, where elementary teachers earn a median $60,650, roughly $63,783 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 8 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 4 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

A master's degree earns its rank on program-appropriate signals, not undergraduate ones: established scale, local teacher pay, and institutional strength. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 4 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, where elementary teachers earn a median $78,390, roughly $75,670 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 16 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Illinois statewide, where elementary teachers earn a median $75,320, roughly $75,352 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 3 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Rockford, IL, where elementary teachers earn a median $64,200, roughly $69,666 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 1 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into St. Louis, MO-IL, where elementary teachers earn a median $60,650, roughly $63,783 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market. Institutional standing and accreditation fill out the rest of the score.

Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.