EIU Media Relations

EIU Moves Up in U.S. News & World Report's Annual Rankings

Eastern Illinois University continues to be recognized in U.S. News and World Report’s annual college rankings, most recently being named No. 5 among the Midwest’s top public regional universities.

It is the top ranking Illinois school on the list.

Eastern also was ranked 30 -- up from 31 in the 2015 rankings – among all Midwestern regional universities offering a full range of undergraduate majors and master’s programs.  EIU is the highest ranking public university in Illinois on that list, released today as part of the magazine’s 2016 edition of “Best Colleges.”

The region encompasses Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.  Rankings are based on schools’ academic reputations, student selectivity, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources and alumni giving.

"We are always pleased to see Eastern recognized favorably in college rankings; although, they are by their nature subjective,” said Blair Lord, provost and vice president for academic affairs.  “Nevertheless, this and other rankings are indicative of the high quality of the educational experience we offer our students.  Our moderate size and committed faculty foster a highly individualized experience for our students and promote a superior learning environment." 

The U.S. News rankings rely heavily on EIU's focus on personal attention. For example, the student-faculty ratio stands at 14:1, and only 3 percent of all classes have 50 or more students.

In addition, EIU continues to tout the highest freshman retention rate (78 percent) and the highest graduation rate (59 percent) among all Illinois public universities in its class.