Accolades
Illinois Wesleyan stands out among the thousands of colleges and universities in the nation, compared on a wide range of factors by a growing number of publishers. (While we have good reasons to brag, we believe the very best way to judge your best-fit college is to visit campus.)
What Others Say About Us
Great College for Getting a Job
Illinois Wesleyan University ranks ＃7 in the nation and ＃1 in Illinois on Zippia's 2023 list of The Best Colleges for Getting a Job, based on Department of Education College Scorecard data.
Zippia, 2023
The Princeton Review
Illinois Wesleyan University has been included in The Princeton Review's annual unranked listing of Best Colleges every year since the list's inception. Only about 15% of America’s 2,600 four-year colleges are profiled in the book. Colleges are selected based on data about their academic offerings and surveys of students attending the schools. Students say Illinois Wesleyan University is a community that "invites you to make the most of your education and is ready to bend over backwards to ensure you enjoy your experience."
The Princeton Review, 2025
Best Consensus Ranked College
In rankings that combine results of the most respected college ranking systems with the averaged ratings of thousands of real student reviews from around the web, College Consensus named Illinois Wesleyan #26 on its 2024 list of Top 100 Consensus Ranked Small Colleges & Universities in the nation (among schools with fewer than 3,000 undergraduate students). Illinois Wesleyan is also ranked #15 on the Top Consensus Ranked Schools in the Midwest, including institutions of all kinds.
College Consensus, 2024
Top 10 College in Illinois
Niche ranks Illinois Wesleyan #3 Best Small College in Illinois for 2026, among the top 100 small colleges in America — and #8 among all colleges and universities in Illinois. Niche rankings are based on analysis of key statistics from the U.S. Department of Education, and millions of reviews.
Niche, 2025
#4 in Nation – 'Incredible Liberal Arts Colleges On the Rise'
Illinois Wesleyan is # 4 in the nation on College Gazette 's list of 10 Incredible Liberal Arts Colleges On the Rise, based on "amazing success over the past 15 years" in programs, student/alumni accomplishments, faculty accolades and other similar metrics.
College Gazette, 2019
Best Colleges that Pay You Back
Illinois Wesleyan University is ranked #7 for graduate earnings among all colleges and universities in Illinois by Degree Choices in its 2025 Best
Colleges rankings. Economic scores are based on the relationship between the cost
of a degree and a student’s eventual earnings, using data from the U.S. Department
of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and the College
Scorecard.
Degree Choices, 2024
Wall Street Journal/College Pulse
Illinois Wesleyan is listed among the Best Colleges in America in the 2026 Wall Street Journal/College Pulse rankings (subscription required), which focus on how well colleges set their graduates up for financial success. IWU
is ranked in the top 10 overall colleges and universities in Illinois. The rankings
are based on financial outcomes, learning environment (based on student surveys) and
diversity in various metrics.
Wall Street Journal/ College Pulse, 2025
WalletHub's Best Colleges
Illinois Wesleyan is the #1 college in Illinois, #8 in the Midwest and #27 in the
U.S. on WalletHub's 2024 Best Colleges Rankings report . WalletHub compares institutions across 30 key measures, evaluating factors such
as student selectivity, cost & financing, campus safety, campus experience, educational
outcomes and career outcomes.
WalletHub, 2024
College Choice
College Choice named Illinois Wesleyan University # 5 among the Best Colleges in Illinois, in a ranking based on academic quality, affordability, and return on investment
(how much you’ll end up paying for college versus what you can expect to earn once
you’ve graduated).
College Choice, 2023
Forbes: America's Top Colleges
Illinois Wesleyan was named to Forbes Top Colleges 2025. This list spotlights the 500 U.S. colleges that offer the best educational, financial,
and career outcomes for all students. Illinois Wesleyan was also named among Forbes'
top 100 Liberal Arts Universities in the U.S.
Forbes, 2024
Best Colleges
Illinois Wesleyan University is # 7 among the Best Colleges in Illinois, using government data to assess important markers of academic outcomes and affordability – aimed at identifying schools that provide students with the skills needed to graduate and successfully enter the workforce.
BestColleges.com, 2023
Best and Most Interesting
The Fiske Guide to Colleges describes Illinois Wesleyan as a college with an emphasis on creativity and the spirit
of inquiry. "The school provides a multitude of paths down which one can travel and
it is up to the student to decide which path to take," one student reported. "IWU
allows you to become who you want to be, but only if you let it."
Fiske Guide to Colleges, 2024
U.S. News Best Colleges
U.S. News and World Report has identified Illinois Wesleyan as the #2 Most Innovative College in the Midwest,
a new ranking based on survey-identified institutions that are making the most innovative
improvements in terms of curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology or
facilities.
the #1 school among baccalaureate institutions in the Midwest awarding degrees in
diverse fields. U.S. News also ranked IWU in the following top-10 categories:
- #2 Regional College in the Midwest
- #4 for Undergraduate Teaching at Colleges in the Midwest
- #5 Best Value for Colleges in the Midwest
- #8 in Social Mobility for Colleges in the Midwest
U.S. News & World Report, 2025
Business Insider
Business Insider named Illinois Wesleyan University the # 10 college in the Midwest, after noting
that many of its top 100 schools fell in this region and deserved additional notice.
Their rankings highlight schools that provide a quality education and graduate students
on time, set graduates up to earn well-paying jobs early in their career, and create
a memorable and enjoyable campus experience.
Business Insider, 2016
Colleges of Distinction
Illinois Wesleyan is described as "a true renaissance university where students are encouraged to explore all of their interests," and "Students have
a host of compelling opportunities to enrich their education with off-campus experiences
that might involve spending a year at Pembroke College/Oxford University or perhaps
a semester in Washington D.C. through American University."
Colleges of Distinction, 2024
College Factual
Illinois Wesleyan is identified as a top school nationwide in College Factual's Best Colleges Rankings, created to help students find the best quality colleges in the U.S.
College Factual, 2023
Best Overall
Illinois Wesleyan University was ranked the #5 Overall College in Illinois and among the top 25 Best Colleges in the Great Lakes Region in College Raptor's 2026 rankings. Institutions are ranked on factors including acceptance rate, graduation rate, student-to-faculty ratio, endowment per student, and academic profile.
College Raptor, 2025
Best Value
Kiplinger's Top 100 Private Liberal Arts Colleges
In its Best College Values for 2019, Kiplinger ranks Illinois Wesleyan in the top 100 among the nation's private liberal arts colleges. This marks the 12th consecutive year that Illinois Wesleyan has been included among the national leaders in this ranking of academic quality and affordability.
Kiplinger's Personal Finance, 2019
Best College for Your Money
Illinois Wesleyan is among MONEY's Best Colleges in America 2025, a list that showcases the country’s top values in higher education. Money analyzes
top colleges based on graduation rates, cost of attendance, financial aid, alumni
salaries and more.
Money, 2024
Top Best Value Colleges in Illinois
SmartAsset compares schools based on a variety of financial factors and data sets,
including starting salary, tuition, living expenses, student retention rate, and scholarships
awarded. Illinois Wesleyan is among the top 10 Best Value Colleges in Illinois.
SmartAsset, 2023
Top 7% Nationally for Low Loan Default Rate
llinois Wesleyan University was ranked by lendedu.com in the top 7% nationally for all colleges and universities for lowest loan default rate (1.40%).
LendEDU, 2020
Best "Secret"
Outstanding but Underappreciated
Jay Mathews, educational columnist for The Washington Post , ranked Illinois Wesleyan 10th on a list of 100 "outstanding but underappreciated"
colleges in the United States. His book, Harvard Schmarvard: Getting Beyond the Ivy League to the College That Is Best for
You , was published in 2003 by Prima Publishing. In 2012, Matthews revisited these top
10 colleges in his column in The Washington Post.
The Washington Post, 2012
Best Kept Secret
Author Peter Arango wrote, "If this book accomplished nothing other than bringing
Illinois Wesleyan to the attention of the college bound, I would be delighted. Not
only is Illinois Wesleyan the model of the effective, responsive, well designed, thoroughly
successful small liberal arts college/university, it is also an institution that hums
with positive energy and which engenders deep feelings of attachment and loyalty among
its students and graduates. I won't say that this is a university that time forgot
(many of its buildings are state-of-the-art), but there is a sense of mutual respect
and affection that sets this solid college apart from many of its peers."
America's Best Kept College Secrets, 2019