UIC vs. Loyola vs. Illinois vs. Purdue

University of Illinois at Chicago vs. Loyola University Chicago vs. University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign vs. Purdue University Main Campus comparison

	University of Illinois at Chicago	Loyola University Chicago	University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign	Purdue University Main Campus
	Remove	Remove	Remove	Remove
Overview	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
Location	Chicago, IL	Chicago, IL	Champaign, IL	West Lafayette, IN
Setting	Large City	Large City	Small City	Midsize Suburban
Enrollment	33,522	17,397	56,563	52,905
Type	Public 4 Year	Private 4 Year	Public 4 Year	Public 4 Year
National Ranking	#198	#224	#120	#103
Religious Affiliation	-	Roman Catholic	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	uic.edu	luc.edu	illinois.edu	purdue.edu
Team Colors

Costs	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
Tuition (In State)	$11,178	$50,270	$12,712	$9,718
Tuition (Out of State)	$26,200	$50,270	$31,208	$28,520
Room & Board	$14,600	$16,894	$13,938	$11,650
Avg Net Price	$11,499	$37,592	$14,297	$12,421
Avg Grant Aid	$15,421	$27,123	$17,524	$11,126
% Receiving Grant Aid	72%	99%	48%	39%

Admission	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
Applied	25,420	40,468	67,398	73,083
Admitted	19,955	32,937	29,446	36,763
Acceptance Rate	78.5%	81.4%	43.7%	54.5%
Enrolled %	23.3%	9%	28.3%	31.9%
Avg High School GPA	3.41	3.71	3.79	3.67
Typical High School Grades	B+	A-	A-	B+
Admissions Standards	Very High	Difficult	Exceptional	Exceptional
Applicant Competition			Low	Low
ACT Range	25/32	27/31	29/34	27/34
SAT Range	1120/1340	1160/1340	1270/1510	1190/1460
Submit Test Scores	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Required to be considered for admission
Application Deadline	Feb 1, 2026		Jan 5, 2026

Academics	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
Student to Faculty Ratio	17:1	13:1	20:1	14:1
Popular Majors	Business (16%) Psychology (13%) Biology (11%) Social Sciences (10%) Engineering (9%)	Business (24%) Social Sciences (12%) Biology (11%) Psychology (10%) Health Professions (8%)	Engineering (16%) Business (13%) Social Sciences (10%) Communication (8%) Psychology (7%)	Engineering (18%) Business (18%) Engineering Technology (8%) Education (6%) Work and Family Studies (6%)
Outcomes	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
Graduation Rate	54%	70%	82%	68%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$61,900	$59,800	$66,500	$61,200
Making Student Loan Payments	68%	76%	78%	78%
Median Student Loan Debt	$18,750	$25,000	$20,500	$21,500
Median Loan Payment	$193	$258	$211	$222

Diversity	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
% Men	14%	9%	21%	15%
% Women	20%	20%	16%	10%
Racial Diversity	Very High	High	Very High	Medium
HBCU	No	No	No	No
% White	34%	58%	48%	65%
% Black	8%	4%	6%	3%
% Hispanic	28%	14%	10%	4%
% Native American	0%	0%	0%	0%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	3%	5%	3%	2%
% International	2%	5%	16%	17%
% Unknown Race	2%	1%	1%	2%

Students	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
% In-State	89%	56%	73%	46%
% Out-of-State	4%	42%	12%	44%
Campus	UIC	Loyola	Illinois	Purdue
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	No	Yes	No
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	No	No	No	No
Daycare Facility	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Learn More	Details	Details	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• University of Illinois at Chicago is larger than than Loyola based on total student enrollment (33,522 students vs. 17,397 students)

UIC vs. Loyola Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, UIC or Loyola?

• Loyola University Chicago is 349.7% more expensive to attend than UIC for in-state tuition ($50,270.00 vs. $11,178.00)
• Out of state tuition is 91.9% higher at Loyola than University of Illinois at Chicago ($50,270.00 vs. $26,200.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at University of Illinois at Chicago than Loyola ($11,499 vs. $37,592)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at University of Illinois at Chicago are 15.7% lower than costs at Loyola University Chicago ($14,600 vs. $16,894)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Loyola University Chicago than University of Illinois at Chicago (99% vs. 72%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Loyola University Chicago students is 75.9% larger than aid received University of Illinois at Chicago ($27,123 vs. $15,421)

UIC vs. Loyola Admissions Difficulty Comparison

Which college is harder to get into, UIC or Loyola? Average SAT and ACT scores plus acceptance rates offer good insight into the difficulty of admission between Loyola or UIC .

• The average SAT score at Loyola University Chicago (1195) is 103 points higher than at UIC (1092)
• Incoming Loyola students have a 3 point higher average ACT score (27) than students at UIC (24)
• Accepted freshman Loyola students have a 0.3 point higher average high school GPA (3.71) than students at UIC (3.41)
• Loyola has a higher acceptance rate (81.4%) than UIC (78.5%)

UIC vs. Loyola Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, UIC or Loyola? Graduation rate, salary and amount of student loan debt are indicators of a college which offers better outcomes for its graduates. Compare the following outcomes facts between Loyola and UIC.

• The graduation rate at Loyola is higher than University of Illinois at Chicago (70% vs. 54%)
• Graduates from University of Illinois at Chicago earn on average $2,100 more per year than Loyola graduates after ten years. ($61,900 vs. $59,800)
• University of Illinois at Chicago students graduate with a $6,250 lower median federal student loan debt than Loyola graduates. ($18,750 vs. $25,000)
• UIC graduates are paying $65 less per month on federal student loans than Loyola graduates. ($193 vs. $258)
• More Loyola graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former UIC students, three years after graduation. (76% vs. 68%)

Sources: U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov IPEDS and College Scorecard https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/