Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Systems Analysts
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Truman College, Daley College, Harold Washington College, and Wilbur Wright College.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Midstate College, National-Louis University, Judson, and Roosevelt University.
- Female: For schools particularly welcoming to female students, consider MacCormac and Midstate College.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Olive-Harvey College, Kennedy-King College, Daley College, and Morton College.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider John A Logan College, National-Louis University, University of St Francis, and Frontier.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Northwestern University, North Park University, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Loyola University.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Monmouth College, Blackburn, Illinois College, and Millikin University.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at Northwestern University, University of Illinois, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Loyola University.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Saint Xavier University, Northwestern University, National-Louis University, and University of St Francis.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Northwestern University, Illinois College, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Millikin University.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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Southern Illinois Univeristy • Carbondale, IL
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1991)
• 5/5/2011
"It was fine. Good for the area."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | It was fine. Good for the area. |
| Program Reputation | 5 | Local reputation is good. National is not. |
| Program Quality | 9 | I learned the basics. I learned more on the job. |
| Instruction | More than 5 years ago | |
| How Difficult | 5 | I managed to work 30+ hours a week too. It was about right. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | It was a good mix. Some classes held in labs. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 1 | There was no flexibility at the time. Classes filled quickly. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | Facilities were adequate. Labs were available. |
| Social Life | 5 | I worked 30+ hours a week. I did not socialize much. |
| Placement Services | 1 | There was little assistance. I found my jobs on my own. |
| Alumni Network | 1 | I haven't heard from them. No job placement support. |
DePaul University • Chicago, IL
Studying Information Systems (completion in 2010)
• 7/14/2011
"I got a good education and I met a good groups of friends. I grew up during this period."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | It's a good school. It might not be the best choice for someone who wants to study information systems, though. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | No one really comes to DePaul for IT. Its an OK school. |
| Program Quality | 6 | Most people don't come to my school to study IT. It was a good education, just not the best. |
| Instruction | 7 | I learned enough to get by in IT. I learned old technology and I learned about career paths. |
| How Difficult | 6 | It's not super easy, but it's not hard. It was somewhere in the middle. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There is a lot more emphasis on book learning than hands on experience. That's why some professors are worse than others. I just wish they would get their act in order to teach students better technology. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | They created online and night classes for the older generation. They really see a benefit to helping the growing population of America. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | DePaul IS program had the best resources. There has been lunches, meetings, and and great facilities. |
| Social Life | 2 | There is no spirit. There are clubs and such, but there is no true spirit at DePaul left. Done. |
| Placement Services | 7 | Most people get jobs. The school tries to help with internships, but other than that, there really isn't much to brag about. |
| Alumni Network | 9 | Our alumni care. But most of the alumni from my program are graduate students. |
Illinois State University • Normal, IL
Studying Information Systems (BS), Applied Computer Science (MS) (completion in 2003)
• 7/25/2011
"ISU worked well for me at the time I was there. The schedule and proximity to work and home was excellent. The classes were not difficult, though some of them demanded a lot of time and work. There was a huge focus on group work and the entire group dynamic, which I enjoyed."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I think ISU was adequate for where I ended up working. The students in the CS degree program had a much more demanding curriculum and one which I would have enjoyed. There is plenty of big business in the area for internships as well, which is convenient. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | I can't answer this question. I'm not in any academic circles where the school's reputation is discussed, and I'm not particularly concerned with it at this point. |
| Program Quality | 6 | I was satisfied with my Master's program, though much of that was self-driven. The undergraduate program, however, seemed to be designed to churn out COBOL programmers for State Farm. |
| Instruction | 8 | My professors were excellent. As I mentioned in the previous question, however, the core curriculum seemed a little dated. |
| How Difficult | 7 | The Information Systems degree was far less demanding academically than Computer Science. Although I wanted to do CS, my timeline didn't allow for taking all of the required math and physics and finishing in a reasonable amount of time. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I think there was a good mix of hands-on and book learning, and it varied by professor. There were labs and assignments for all IT classes. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | I never had a problem finding classes at reasonable times during either my BS or my MS studies. I went to school year-round and was able to work at the same time. |
| Academic Facilities | 6 | The computer labs were difficult to work from, in my opinion. I joined study groups but never used any tutoring. The professors always seemed happy to help, or at least make a grad student available. |
| Social Life | 5 | I was an older student with a job and a wife, so I can't answer this question. From speaking with my younger classmates, however, parties were definitely not lacking. |
| Placement Services | 5 | I was already working when I graduated, but as a contract analyst in the same company where I work now. When I graduated, they hired me full-time. I interviewed with companies I met at a career fair at the school, but there was no intervention from the school itself. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I'm not aware of what is provided, honestly. I receive information from them periodically, but I don't pay much attention to it. |
University Of Wisconsin Parkside • Kenosha, IL
Studying Biology (completion in 2011)
• 7/31/2011
"The school was good but undervalued. I hoped that the ratings would improve, but the student demographics did not help."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | If they got into a ivy league school and could afford, it then no. If they were looking for a cheap school, then yes. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | It is an undervalued school and the student demographics do not help. |
| Program Quality | 7 | The program is a feeder program for Abbott Laboratories. However, when Abbott has its hiring freeze, it does not help. |
| Instruction | 9 | Most of the professors attended ivy league schools and have received multimillion dollar grants. |
| How Difficult | 9 | It is hard but undervalued. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | We used many resources. Being a science major, I had a lot of labs. I did have some professors who did not like to use text books. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | Very flexible. I have done summer school for two summers. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | The dorms are fully equipped, and the library has over 100,000 volumes. |
| Social Life | 5 | I did not participate. There are many sororities and fraternities, though. |
| Placement Services | 6 | I only used it once, and that attempt was unsuccessful. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I have never received a call from them for fundraisers. I have not participated in any events either. |
Illinois State University • Normal, IL
Studying Information Systems (completion in 2010)
• 8/15/2011
"I wish my major had classes that were a little more rigorous and had a bit more emphasis on programming. Many of the teachers did not seem to care about their students or the amount they learned, specially if they were tenured or close to retirement."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | If this person was trying to simply get a degree to look for jobs like mine, then they would probably be fine at ISU. If the student is looking for a more intense curriculum that will adequately train them for a programming-oriented career, I would say look elsewhere. |
| Program Reputation | 6 | There are a few companies that look to ISU to recruit from their Information Systems major. Many of the classes in the major are tailored to benefit these select companies. |
| Program Quality | 5 | I feel as though ISU did not adequately prepare me enough for the computer programming part of my job. They focused a lot on the systems development life cycle - which is great, but at the company I work for there is a lot of programming required for systems analysts too. |
| Instruction | 4 | Some teachers in the major obviously did not care to be there. They were either close to retirement and just gave up on adequately teaching students or had too much flexibility with writing their curriculum and it wasn't up to par. However, there were a few really great teachers (especially for Information Security) that I learned a lot from. |
| How Difficult | 5 | There were probably only two classes that I really struggled with in my Information Systems major: database communications and systems development II. Systems development II was only made difficult by the teacher - the material was not hard itself, but the teacher liked to talk around the subject matter instead of getting to the point. There were a lot that students considered to be "Easy A's." |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Many classes I took went straight through a textbook. Some of the programming courses tried to deviate a little, but very little of the classroom material was original. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 3 | There is not much in the way of online offerings. They try to make more of an effort in the summer, and for this major they schedule some night classes for people who are trying to advance their education while they work. |
| Academic Facilities | 6 | The Information Systems/Computer Science program has a really great computer lab for people who are part of those majors. Tutors and study groups weren't readily available, but the classrooms in the Information Systems building were nice enough. |
| Social Life | 7 | There were a lot of extra-curricular activities at ISU. There were many sororities and frat houses, football games were pretty big, and there are quite a few special interest clubs to join. |
| Placement Services | 4 | I have heard some people have had luck using the career services, but I obtained work and an internship on my own. My fiance tried working through career services with little avail. |
| Alumni Network | 2 | I haven't really been contacted by ISU's alumni network. I get requests for money from them occasionally, but I haven't donated anything yet - especially since I wasn't really satisfied with the education I received. |
Loyola University • Chicago, IL
Studying Engineering (completion in 2001)
• 10/30/2011
"I am overall satisfied with my school. The networking and teaching were out of this world. The only negative was how much tuition cost."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Back in 2001, engineering was a minor study compared to nursing and medicine at Loyola. But they are increasingly expanding their focuses of study, and the engineering program is getting better and better in 2011. |
| Program Reputation | 6 | While it isn't well known for engineering, it is still a great program. Nursing and medicine is what Loyola is mainly known for. |
| Program Quality | 8 | It is a great program, but it is a fairly expensive school to attend. I learned a lot from attending class, something many students do. |
| Instruction | 9 | The instruction was excellent. I only can remember one teacher that I actually disliked. My teachers had me working a lot, and it wasn't all busy work. |
| How Difficult | 8 | It took lots of time out of my schedule, but it was worth it in the long run as I got a great job out of it. I put in lots of hours, and it paid off. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Engineering in basic classes was mostly book learning oriented. But later on in the program there was more hands-on learning. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | Fairly flexible class schedule. Nothing different from other school's schedule systems. I usually had school five days a week and made Fridays my light days. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | You get what you pay for. Loyola has up to date facilities from what I remember back in 2001 and before that. The library was often used to get out of my room and study. |
| Social Life | 5 | The school spirit is lacking. I didn't really go to any games besides basketball. We don't have the best teams, and many students commute, meaning there are not as many parties on the weekends. |
| Placement Services | 8 | As I said before, the networking and connections you make from studying in Chicago makes job placement fairly easy if you look for it. I didn't really use their career services assistance program much. |
| Alumni Network | 8 | It was in the heart of Chicago. Many connections in a big city, and my professor helped me get the job that I currently have. Networking is amazing at Loyola. |
DeVry University • Online, IL
Studying Health Information Technology (completion in 2008)
• 12/13/2011
"I worked very hard for an average degree. The cost was also very high -- and I'm still paying off student loans."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | DeVry's HIT program would be a good fit for an average student aspiring to be a healthcare coder. Many coders work from their homes now, and the online education might prepare them properly. |
| Program Reputation | 6 | If a student wishes to learn about health information coding (only), this is probably a good program. I was looking for more information technology content, and am dissatisfied. |
| Program Quality | 3 | DeVry is not the widely recognized school I was led to believe. I'm almost embarrassed to say that I attended there. Plus, the educators and professors were extremely sub-par in their own work experience in the HIT field. |
| Instruction | 3 | In my experience, the professors and educators put forth the bare minimum effort in their classes. Students (via discussion boards) were much more helpful than the teachers. |
| How Difficult | 6 | The workload was challenging. It gave me opportunities for growth. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Online education pushes the students to learn on their own. There are virtually no opportunities for face-to-face interactions. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Online education is ideal for me. It gives me the opportunity to 'attend' class on my own schedule. |
| Academic Facilities | I did not take advantage of any facilities or resources at DeVry. The online classes gave me all the content I needed. | |
| Social Life | Online education is very different from a brick-and-mortar college. I did not attend any social gatherings while a virtual student. | |
| Placement Services | I was already employed while completing my degree, so I did not use the school's job placement service. | |
| Alumni Network | 2 | I have heard (via email) from DeVry occasionally. Fortunately, I have no need to network with former students. |
Eastern Illinois University • Charleston, IL
Studying Computer Technology (completion in 2005)
• 12/13/2011
"It's a good school and a decent curriculum, and it's well worth the price you pay. If you're just looking for the degree simply to say you have it, then you'll be very satisfied."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | EIU is a great school for the money. If you need a degree on the cheap but still want the "college experience," then this is the place to go. They need to "crack the whip" a little more, as EIU tends to nanny their students a bit too much. |
| Program Reputation | 2 | The program is still in the building stage, so there's not much of a reputation to speak of. It has a reputation of being a good value for the money. |
| Program Quality | 3 | It felt more like a management program than a hardcore programming curriculum. There was too much emphasis on research and not enough on theory. |
| Instruction | 8 | It's a small school, so the instructors were accessible. They were willing to work outside of office hours to help. |
| How Difficult | 2 | The emphasis was more on management than actual programming. The research aspect presented a minimal challenge. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | It's probably a little too bookish for most people. There needs to be more concentrated hands-on learning, as what they currently push is a bit too broad. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 9 | Classes are seldom full. This means there is usually only one iteration of a given class per semester. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | There are many computer labs on campus. Most of them have computers that are only a few years old, and they are constantly being updated/upgraded. |
| Social Life | 8 | EIU lays on the school spirit a little too thick for my taste. Homecoming is a big deal and the "Golf and Goat" outing for School of Technology students/alumni is a highlight for us. |
| Placement Services | 7 | I didn't use the job placement myself, because I was already employed. I have, however, heard very good things about it and am confident that I would get a lot of help from them if I required it. |
| Alumni Network | 8 | EIU alumni are very gung-ho in general. School of Technology alumni go out of their way to recruit graduating alumni. |
University Of Illinois • Urbana-Champaign, IL
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2012)
• 12/16/2011
"University of Illinois gave me an excellent education. Now that I have a job, I am satisfied with my education."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | University of Illinois provides a good education. The career assistance it provides is beneficial to students seeking work after graduation. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | The computer science program at the University of Illinois has an excellent reputation. Employers seem to prefer the University of Illinois program over that of many other Illinois schools. |
| Program Quality | 7 | University of Illinois is a fine academic institution. It trained me well for my career. |
| Instruction | 7 | The teachers were focused and motivated. They were also ready and willing to help. |
| How Difficult | 8 | Computer science was a difficult area of study. Although the instruction was supportive, computer science is inherently difficult. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | A number of lessons are taught in a hands-on manner, yet there is still a reliance on books. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | My school had a wide variety of classes. Thus, it was easy to create a schedule that was flexible. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | My school had top-of-the-line facilities. It had multiple libraries, media centers, and computer libraries. |
| Social Life | 9 | I was involved in Greek life at the University of Illinois. It provides a unique social experience. |
| Placement Services | 7 | My school had a number of career assistance programs. It also had many individual career counselors. |
| Alumni Network | 8 | University of Illinois has a vast alumni network. Additionally, it has a large Greek (fraternity/sorority) system, which also is connected to a vast network of alumni. |
University Of Illinois • Urbana-Champaign, IL
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2012)
• 12/16/2011
"University of Illinois gave me an excellent education. Now that I have a job, I am satisfied with my education."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | University of Illinois provides a good education. The career assistance it provides is beneficial to students seeking work after graduation. |
| Program Reputation | The CS program at Illinois has an excellent reputation. Employers seem to prefer the University of Illinois program over that of many other Illinois schools. | |
| Program Quality | 7 | University of Illinois is a fine academic institution. It trained me well for my career. |
| Instruction | 7 | The teachers were focused and motivated. They were also ready and willing to help. |
| How Difficult | 8 | Computer Science was a difficult area of study. Although the instruction was supportive, CS is inherently difficult. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | A number of lessons are taught in a hands-on manner. Yet, there is still a reliance on books. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | My school had a wide variety of classes. Thus, it was easy to create a schedule that was flexible. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | My school had top-of-the-line facilities. It had multiple libraries, media centers, and computer libraries. |
| Social Life | 9 | I was involved in Greek life at the University of Illinois. It provides a unique social experience. |
| Placement Services | 7 | My school had a number of career assistance programs and many individual counselors. |
| Alumni Network | 8 | University of Illinois has a vast alumni network. It has a large Greek system, which also is connected to a vast network of alumni. |
Illinois State University • Normal, IL
Studying Business Information Systems (completion in 1996)
• 3/22/2012
"I remember college as some of the best years of my life. Had some great times and prepared me well for my job."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It has a good program that employers are looking for. It's a big time school, but everyone is so nice and friendly. |
| Program Reputation | 9 | Based on others I have talked to at my work, they are very impressed with ISU's program. Our company actively looks to recruit from here because they know it is a good program. |
| Program Quality | 7 | The program prepared me well for my job. The class projects where we worked in team to solve programming challenges are exactly like a real life examples of my job. |
| Instruction | 8 | The curriculum was good because it gave you the basic programming language and System Development Life Cycle methodology that is used. But it also provided good team building projects teaching students how to work together, and this mimics what I do in my job. |
| How Difficult | 8 | Overall, it was just right. Some very difficult classes. For me specifically, some of the programming classes were very hard. However, it's not any easier in my real job, so I'm glad they pushed me to get some experience. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | It depended on the professor. Some were very book oriented while others were more team projects. I think the mix was good. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | Overall it was flexible enough to allow me to have a job while I went to school. There were enough choices of class schedules that I could build a schedule that worked. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Was very impressed with the facilities and the latest technology. Always had computer labs open and available to use. |
| Social Life | 5 | Sports were not the best, but I got involved in a lot of other activities. This is one of the key things employers look - your other involvements. |
| Placement Services | 5 | Would have liked to see a little more help in getting an internship. For actual jobs, it was good, as it brought in many companies for career day to make connections. |
| Alumni Network | 7 | Haven't had to use the Alumni network much. However, it seems good, and when I was in school I went to the Alumni center several times to get help looking for jobs. I found that very helpful. |
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