Rankings & Statistics
Illinois: Altogether Extraordinary
Conveniently centered between Chicago, Indianapolis, and St. Louis, the University of Illinois provides an entertainment and cultural hub on par with the country’s leading cities. Our campus community is home to Big 10 Division I sports; marquee theatrical, musical, dance performances; amazing festivals and fairs; and fantastic health and recreational facilities.
- The Illinois CS undergraduate program is ranked 5th by U.S. News & World Report, last ranked in 2020.
- The Illinois CS graduate program is ranked 5th by U.S. News & World Report, last ranked in 2022.
- There are 20+ Illinois CS degree programs and more than 90 courses in computer science.
- In 2020, Champaign-Urbana was ranked #27 on Livability's list of Top 100 Best Places to Live in America.
- Champaign County was ranked 16th in the U.S. as a relocation destination for young adults by 24/7 Wall St. in 2019.
- Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine lists the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on its list of "100 Best Values in Public Colleges" for 2017.
- The U of I ranks 10th in the number of entrepreneurs getting venture capital funding, with more than 600 founders receiving funding. (Pitchbook, 2020 Universities Report)
- Popular Mechanics designated C-U a Best Start-Up City in America.
1964
Department Founded
17,000+
Illinois CS Alumni
$33M+
In FY21 Research Expenditures
Illinois CS Academic Programs Facts
Undergraduate Programs
- 15 undergraduate degree programs, including 12 ground-breaking blended CS + X programs that are at the forefront of digital transformation.
- Total undergraduate enrollment, fall 2022: 2,435
- Total bachelor's degrees conferred, academic year 2021-22: 573
- Incoming 2020 freshman average composite ACT score: 34.3
- U.S. News & World Report ranking (2020): 5
Graduate Programs
- 4 graduate degree programs, with the MCS degree available both on campus and online, through Coursera's platform.
- Total graduate enrollment, fall 2022: 2,682
- Total MCS degrees conferred, academic year 2020-21: 546
- Total MS degrees conferred, academic year 2020-21: 49
- Total PhD degrees conferred, academic year 2019-20: 53
- U.S. News & World Report ranking (2022): 5
121
Computer Science Faculty
18
ACM Fellows
20
IEEE Fellows
47
NSF CAREER Award Winners
11
Sloan Research Fellows
Enrollments
According to the Division of Management Information.
Undergraduate Enrollments
| Fall 2016 | Fall 2017 | Fall 2018 | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BS in CS from The Grainger College of Engineering | 1,105 | 1,123 | 1,054 | 1,021 | 1,057 | 1260 | 1296 |
| Mathematics & CS | 305 | 301 | 273 | 276 | 261 | 275 | 272 |
| Statistics & CS | 142 | 191 | 259 | 308 | 316 | 313 | 308 |
| CS + Advertising | - | - | - | 10 | 30 | 39 | 62 |
| CS + Animal Sciences | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 4 |
| CS + Anthropology | 16 | 26 | 36 | 32 | 19 | 15 | 17 |
| CS + Astronomy | 32 | 31 | 39 | 46 | 39 | 50 | 50 |
| CS + Chemistry | 33 | 46 | 41 | 32 | 31 | 31 | 24 |
| CS + Crop Sciences | - | - | 4 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 15 |
| CS + Economics | - | - | 3 | 28 | 72 | 137 | 156 |
| CS + GGIS | - | - | - | 5 | 10 | 13 | 15 |
| CS + Linguistics | 53 | 69 | 76 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 103 |
| CS + Music | - | - | 1 | 14 | 19 | 28 | 32 |
| CS + Philosophy | - | - | - | 13 | 28 | 59 | 81 |
| Total | 1,686 | 1,787 | 1,786 | 1,883 | 1,982 | 2,329 | 2,435 |
Graduate Enrollments
| Fall 2016 | Fall 2017 | Fall 2018 | Fall 2019 | Fall 2020 | Fall 2021 | Fall 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| On-Campus MCS | 79 | 120 | 159 | 132 | 170 | 224 | 617 |
| Online MCS* | 174 | 337 | 619 | 935 | 1189 | 1387 | 1,368 |
| MS in Bioinformatics | 5 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 8 |
| MS in Computer Science | 119 | 140 | 132 | 113 | 91 | 120 | 156 |
| PhD in Computer Science | 320 | 323 | 345 | 388 | 422 | 461 | 492 |
| Non-degree | 0 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 16 | 29 | 6 |
| Total | 697 | 932 | 1,272 | 1,585 | 1,897 | 2,268 | 2,682 |
*Includes our legacy online program and the Online MCS and MCS-DS offered through Coursera, which launched in fall 2016.
Average Starting Salaries for Illinois CS Graduates
According to Engineering Career Services.
Average Signing Bonus: $31,211
B.S. (2020-2021)
Average Signing Bonus: $33,808
M.S. (2020-2021)
Average Signing Bonus: $66,825
Ph.D. (2020-2021)
The average starting salary projected by the National Association of Colleges and Employers is $75,900 for 2022 CS bachelor's degree recipients.
Degrees Conferred
According to the Division of Management Information.
Note: Degrees are awarded three times per year: August, December, and May.
Undergraduate Degrees Conferred
| 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BS in CS from The Grainger College of Engineering | 274 | 329 | 256 | 346 | 348 | 291 | 304 | 299 |
| Mathematics & CS | 22 | 32 | 60 | 78 | 59 | 80 | 89 | 76 |
| Statistics & CS | 8 | 17 | 20 | 38 | 62 | 77 | 95 | 95 |
| CS + Advertising | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 |
| CS + Anthropology | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 5 |
| CS + Astronomy | - | - | 3 | 4 | 3 | 14 | 10 | 9 |
| CS + Chemistry | - | 1 | - | 8 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 13 |
| CS + Crop Sciences | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| CS + Economics | - | - | - | - | 1 | 4 | - | 29 |
| CS + GGIS | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 |
| CS + Linguistics | 1 | 7 | 18 | 12 | 27 | 27 | 20 | |
| CS + Music | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| CS + Philosophy | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8 |
| Total | 305 | 381 | 349 | 497 | 503 | 508 | 544 | 573 |
Graduate Degrees Conferred
| 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| On-Campus MCS | 52 | 100 | 59 | 93 | 115 | 90 | 119 | 126 |
| Online MCS* | 24 | 13 | 19 | 36 | 100 | 224 | 427 | 485 |
| MS in Bioinformatics | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5 |
| MS in Computer Science | 51 | 63 | 55 | 76 | 71 | 70 | 44 | 55 |
| PhD in Computer Science | 40 | 40 | 35 | 39 | 42 | 48 | 53 | 58 |
*Includes our legacy online program and the Online MCS and MCS-DS offered through Coursera, which launched in fall 2016.