Northeastern Illinois University

Northeastern Illinois University awarded 76 bachelor's degrees in social work in the most recent reporting year, which ranks it #47 out of the 587 U.S. colleges that award the degree. That puts it among the larger BSW programs in the country — roughly 0.41% of every social work bachelor's degree awarded nationally comes from here.

39.5% of students complete their degree, below the 50.4% median across BSW-awarding colleges — worth asking the department about directly. Students who finish take a median of 5 years to do it. Transfer students actually outperform first-time entrants here (57.2% vs 24.0%), which is a good signal if you are coming from a community college.

The average student pays $14,140 a year after grants and scholarships — $4,866 below the $19,006 median across the 21 BSW colleges in Illinois. 81.0% of first-time students receive Pell Grants, a high share that usually reflects a student body with substantial financial need — and a financial aid office practiced at handling it. Net price is the number that matters when comparing programs, not sticker tuition — and because most social work roles are with government or nonprofit employers, graduates are typically eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness.