Our 2022 rankings of the Top Online MBA Programs in Illinois. For an explanation of ranking criteria, click here.
| Ranking | School | City |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Champaign |
| 2 | Southern Illinois University Carbondale | Carbondale |
| 3 | Western Illinois University | Macomb |
Gies College of Business (GCB or Gies) at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC or Illinois) officially formed in 1915. The College serves more than 6,000 business students each year, with half enrolled in graduate programs. Among GCB’s advanced degree programs is a fully online MBA known as the iMBA. This program attracts more than 3,300 applicants each year, with an average 10 years of work experience. Serving just over 5,400 students in 2021, the UIUC iMBA program has a 61% promotion or job offer rate, and an average 22% pay increase before graduation. Most iMBA students complete the program in less than 2.5 years.
The iMBA is divided into several specializations including Global Challenges in Mergers and Acquisitions, Business, Entrepreneurship and Strategic Innovation, Digital Marketing, and Business Analytics. Elective options are available and include courses such as Infonomics, Project Management, and Financial Statement Analysis for MBAs. Students in the iMBA Program will also complete three capstones (group-based projects), including two specialization capstones and one program capstone, each culminating with a final case presentation.
Learning for the iMBA Program takes place through Coursera and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The part of the curriculum delivered through the Coursera platform is on demand, so students can complete it at their own pace. Other program features include hands-on faculty, interactive classes and projects, and weekly live class sessions, covering multiple time zones across the world. Students in the UIUC Gies iMBA Program live and work in more than 50 different countries.
Graduates of the Gies College of Business at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are routinely recruited by Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Deloitte. UIUC graduates have also been hired by Ernst & Young, JP Morgan Chase, Others include Tesla, Facebook, IBM Caterpillar, Humana, Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (ADM), Johnson & Johnson, Intel, Kroger, Liberty Mutual, Lockheed Martin, Caterpillar, Bank of America, Oracle, PepsiCo, Cisco Systems, Dell, USAA, Walmart, Goldman Sachs Group, Pfizer, Tesla, Comcast, Verizon, and Wells Fargo, among others.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC). One of the original 37 public land-grant institutions created by the Morrill Act in 1862, UIUC was founded as Illinois Industrial University in 1867, making it the oldest institution in the University of Illinois System. Serving 56,299, with a record-breaking freshman class of 8,303 for the 2121-2022 academic year, UIUC is also the largest campus in the System. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign offers more than 250 undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs across 16 colleges and schools, and The Graduate College.
The College of Business and Analytics (COBA) at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIU Carbondale) launched in 1957 as the School of Business and Administration. When the school begam it offered several courses. Today, COBA serves around 1,350 students enrolled in dozens of programs housed in four schools: Finance and Economics, Analytics, Management and Marketing, and Accountancy.
SIU COBA is AACSB accredited and provides a number of online options for students seeking a graduate degree. Among COBA’s online options is the Online MBA (SIU oMBA) with a General Concentration or Analytics for Managers Concentration. Both programs consist of 16 courses that can be completed in two years. All students will complete the same core business and professional development courses. Examples include International Dimensions of Business, Critical Issues for Business Leaders, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Business Policies, and Seminar on Career Effectiveness.
The General Concentration Core consists of Brand Management, Business Ethics, Advanced Financial Management, and Management of Information Systems. The Analytics for Managers Core includes Data Science and Analytics for Managers, Advanced Analytics and Artificial Intelligence for Managers, Advanced Analytics and Visualization for Managers, and the Analytics Capstone.
Students in the Analytics for Managers Concentration have access to the Pontikes Center for Advanced Analytics and Artificial Intelligence—a Virtual Think Tank that provides instruction and support for students through interaction with leaders in analytics.
Graduates of the SIU oMBA are prepared for leadership positions in Financial Services, Logistics, Engineering, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Hospitality, Retail, and Marketing, among others.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Founded in 1869 as Illinois’ second teachers’ college, SIU opened with just 143 students and a dozen academic departments. Today, Southern Illinois University Carbondale is the flagship campus of the SIU System, serving close to 11,300 students enrolled in more than 300 programs housed in 12 colleges and schools.
The College of Business and Technology (CBT) at Western Illinois University (WIU) has been in existence for nearly 60 years. With a student enrollment of 2,850 out of WIU’s 6,980 students, CBT is one of the school’s largest colleges. Students here have access to 18 undergraduate majors and five graduate degree programs in five CBT schools including Accounting, Finance, Economics, and Decision Sciences; Agriculture; Computer Sciences; Engineering and Technology; and Management and Marketing.
With locations in Macomb, Illinois and the Quad Cities (Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline, Illinois, and Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa), WIU CBT is AACSB, ABET, ATMAE, and ACCGC accredited.
The MBA Program at WIU CBT has On Campus, Hybrid-Livestream, and 100% Online options. While courses for all programs are flexible, the most flexible option is the Online MBA. There are no face-to-face requirements for any of the Online MBA courses and they are delivered through Western Online, which utilizes the course management software system, Desire2Learn (D2L). For the Hybrid-Livestream option, 75% of coursework is delivered online, with 25% of the program consisting of face-to-face meetings. Some face-to-face meetings may be remotely accessed if the course is available as a Livestream option.
The WIU CBT Online MBA is available to students with business and non-business backgrounds. Consisting of 33 semester hours of study, students will take 18 semester hours of Core MBA courses, three semester hours of Directed Electives, nine semester hours of Concentration courses, and the Strategic Management course worth three semester hours. Concentration options include Health Services Administration, Finance, Supply Chain Management, International Business, Corporate Security, Management, Economics, Business Analytics, Human Resource Management, Agriculture Business, Information Systems, and Accounting.
Western Illinois University provides three start times for MBA students including the Fall, Spring, and Summer sessions. GMAT waivers are available, and students can earn their MBA in as few as 18 months.
Graduates of the CBT Online MBA Program at Western Illinois University have been recruited by companies such as Deloitte, Edward Jones, AT&T, KPMG, State Farm, PwC, BP Amoco, Kraft Foods, Caterpillar, IBM, John Deere, BDO, Accenture, EY, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Archer Daniels Midland (ADM)Nestle Purina North America, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Western Illinois University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission. Established in 1899, WIU opened in 1902-1903 as Western Illinois Normal School. Today, the school serves 7,455 students enrolled in more than 115 degree and post-baccalaureate certificate programs administered by the Colleges of Business and Technology; Arts and Sciences; Education and Human Services; and Fine Arts and Communication.
