Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger ProgramsPublic

Western Illinois University

Macomb, Illinois·Public, 4-year or above·Great Lakes·wiu.edu
6-yr Graduation
45%
+11.5pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Total enrollment
6,332
peer median 5,181
Avg net price
$11,592
+$730 vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
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AdmissionsOutcomesProgram outcomesAccreditationCostFederal aidLoan defaultsAcademic programsEnrollment trendsAthleticsCampus safetyFacultyPeers

Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

IPEDS
Applied
8,674
8,674 candidates competed
Admitted
6,174
71.2% acceptance rate
Enrolled
634
10.3% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

IPEDS
Overall completion
45%+11.5pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
4-year graduation
31%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
45%
Full-time retention
61%

Pell equity

22.0pp gap
Pell recipients
36%
Non-Pell
58%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 22.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

FVT/GE

Of 122 Title IV programs, 51 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 2 fail. 69 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
122
Passing
51
41.8% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
2
1.6% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.6%
+1.0pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

122programs
  • Passing51 · 41.8%
  • No Data69 · 56.6%
  • Failing2 · 1.6%

Severity spectrum

Critical
1
Severe
1
Recoverable
0
At Risk
4
Watch
7
Safe
40
No data
69

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

53
Museology/Museum Studies
Master's Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
-19.1%
$43,387 vs $53,607
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
-8.0%
$56,934 vs $61,854
Parks Recreation and Leisure Facilities Management
Master's Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+0.9%
$52,028 vs $51,545
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+2.6%
$35,703 vs $34,808
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Master's Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+6.3%
$54,783 vs $51,545
Biology General
Master's Degree · Biological And Biomedical Sciences
+7.6%
$57,753 vs $53,672
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
+10.2%
$51,103 vs $46,391
English Language and Literature General
Master's Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
+13.1%
$55,987 vs $49,483

Near the line (±5%)

Programs within five points of the pass line, one cohort year from flipping.

2
Parks Recreation and Leisure Facilities Management
Master's Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+0.9%
+$483
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+2.6%
+$895

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

42
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
76%
$27,177 debt · $35,703 earn
Sociology
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
76%
$38,132 debt · $50,080 earn
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
75%
$29,517 debt · $39,609 earn
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences General
Bachelor Degree · Family And Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences
69%
$37,057 debt · $54,059 earn
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
67%
$38,023 debt · $56,934 earn
Allied Health Diagnostic Intervention and Treatment Professions
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
64%
$31,567 debt · $49,431 earn
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
61%
$31,211 debt · $51,103 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
60%
$27,000 debt · $44,683 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

DAPIP
AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1913Next review Aug 2031

Programmatic accreditations · 10

Action history · 15

  1. May 2025Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the baccalaureate degree levels
  2. Feb 2025Renewal of Accreditation
    American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology · Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) - Graduate degree programs
  3. Jan 2025Renewal of Accreditation
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Didactic Program in Dietetics
  4. Jan 2024Approved for Distance Education
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Didactic Program in Dietetics
  5. Jul 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Didactic Program in Dietetics

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

College Scorecard

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$6,968
$30–48k$7,391
$48–75k$11,608
$75–110k$16,515
$110k+$17,621

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$11,592
+$730vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs median $10,863
Federal loans
30.9%
In-state tuition
$14,952
Out-of-state
$14,952

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

Federal Student Aid

In AY 2024–25, 2,192 students received $11.6M in Pell grants, alongside $20.5M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
2,192
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$11.6M
$11,595,410 total
Direct Loans
$20.5M
3,485 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

3k
’20
3k
’21
3k
’22
2k
’23
2k
’24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$5.6M
1,389 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$5.3M
1,363 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$5.8M
418 loan awards
Parent PLUS$3.2M
250 loan awards
Grad PLUS$616K
65 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Cohort Default Rate

Of 2,629 borrowers who entered repayment, 86 (3.2%) defaulted within three years — above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
3.2%
+0.9pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
2,629
Defaulted
86
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
9.5%
2017
8.8%
2018
7.9%
2019
3.2%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Western Illinois

Top program areas ranked by completions.

IPEDS
Distinct CIP programs91
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,484 total completions
01Computer Sciences
25116.9%
02Education
23115.6%
03Business
22315.0%
04Security/Protective
21614.6%
05Liberal Arts
1369.2%
06Visual/Performing Arts
936.3%
07Psychology
926.2%
08Social Sciences
835.6%
09Health Professions
805.4%
10Mathematics
795.3%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

IPEDS
Fall total
6,332
12-mo unduplicated
8,213
Undergraduate
5,706
Graduate
2,507

Gender split

Men
42%3,455
Women
58%4,758

Race / ethnicity composition

White
56.1%
Black
20.9%
Hispanic
12.5%
Non-resident
3.9%
Two or more
3.2%
Unknown
1.7%
Asian
1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

EADA
Athletes
343
217 M · 126 W
Women athletes
36.7%
Athletic aid
$4.1M
Total student aid
Budget
$13.8M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$2.4M
$1.7M
Recruiting expense
$102K
$42K
Head-coach salaries
$99K
$67K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 9

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)
49 M · 76 W
$850K
Football
117 M · —
$3.9M
Soccer
30 M · 32 W
$1.1M
Baseball
33 M · —
$693K
Basketball
15 M · 14 W
$2.6M
Softball
— · 24 W
$638K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Clery Act
Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
2.49
19 offenses · 7,643 students

3-year trend

0.672 yrs ago1.611 yr ago2.49Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
36
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
31
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
16

Criminal offenses by type

Burglary
7
Rape
4
Motor vehicle theft
4
Aggravated assault
3
Arson
1

By location

19total
  • On campus18
  • Non-campus1

Includes 11 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

4
Domestic violence
13
Dating violence
0
Stalking
17 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons03
Drugs8138
Liquor2080

Residence-hall fires

  • Thompson Hall4 fires
    Damage $0-$99
  • Thompson Hall4 fires
    Damage $0-$99
  • Thompson Hall4 fires
    An unknown subject held an ignition source to a poster hanging on a hallway wall, setting fire to the poster.Damage $0-$99
  • Thompson Hall4 fires
    Damage $0-$99
  • Westbrook House1 fire
    OtherDamage $100-$999
  • Olson Hall1 fire
    Machinery/IndustrialDamage $0-$99

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

IPEDS
Student-to-faculty
12.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
385

Western Illinois vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Western Illinois selected for federal comparison reporting.

IPEDS
GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectWestern Illinois University
45%—6,332$11,592Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Northeastern Illinois University
22%74.6%5,734$13,550Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Eastern Illinois University
47%65.3%8,505$14,093Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
University of Illinois Springfield
52%85.9%4,628$8,916Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Governors State University
21%48.3%4,397$9,477Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Chicago State University
15%43.3%2,238$10,133Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Peer group median34%65.3%5,181$10,863

Frequently asked questions about Western Illinois University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Western Illinois.

What is the graduation rate at Western Illinois University?

Western Illinois University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 45% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Western Illinois University?

Western Illinois University reports a total enrollment of 6,332 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Western Illinois University?

The average net price at Western Illinois University is $11,592 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Western Illinois University?

Western Illinois University's yield rate is 10.3%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Western Illinois University located?

Western Illinois University is located in Macomb, Illinois 61455.

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