Illinois: Colleges & Universities

Colleges & Universities in Illinois

Public Universities, Community Colleges & Private Institutions

Illinois has one of the largest and most diverse higher-education systems in the United States. The state offers public universities, community colleges, private nonprofit colleges and universities, private for-profit institutions, specialized professional schools, and career-focused educational programs.

Illinois' public higher-education system includes 12 public universities and 48 public community colleges. The community-college system is organized through 39 community-college districts and serves students throughout the state with affordable associate-degree, transfer, workforce, career-technical, and certificate programs.

Illinois also has a large independent higher-education sector. The Illinois Board of Higher Education currently identifies 104 independent not-for-profit colleges and universities and 15 independent for-profit institutions.

This directory is designed for high-school students, parents, transfer students, adult learners, career changers, and anyone researching higher-education opportunities in Illinois.

Illinois Higher-Education at a Glance

12

Public Universities

4-Year Institutions

48

Community Colleges

Public 2-Year

104

Private Nonprofit

Independent Institutions

15

Private For-Profit

Independent Institutions

Illinois Higher-Education System:

• 12 public universities.
• 48 public community colleges.
• 104 independent not-for-profit colleges and universities.
• 15 independent for-profit institutions.
• Illinois also has out-of-state institutions authorized to operate in the state and hundreds of private business and vocational schools.

1. Public 4-Year Universities — 12

Illinois has 12 public universities. These institutions offer bachelor's, master's, doctoral, professional, and certificate programs in a wide range of academic fields.

#	Institution	Address	Official Website
1	Chicago State University	9501 South King Drive, Chicago, IL 60628	csu.edu
2	Eastern Illinois University	600 Lincoln Avenue, Charleston, IL 61920	eiu.edu
3	Governors State University	1 University Parkway, University Park, IL 60484	govst.edu
4	Illinois State University	100 North University Street, Normal, IL 61761	illinoisstate.edu
5	Northeastern Illinois University	5500 North St. Louis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60625	neiu.edu
6	Northern Illinois University	1425 West Lincoln Highway, DeKalb, IL 60115	niu.edu
7	Southern Illinois University Carbondale	1263 Lincoln Drive, Carbondale, IL 62901	siu.edu
8	Southern Illinois University Edwardsville	1 Hairpin Drive, Edwardsville, IL 62026	siue.edu
9	University of Illinois Chicago	1200 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL 60607	uic.edu
10	University of Illinois Springfield	One University Plaza, Springfield, IL 62703	uis.edu
11	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign	601 East John Street, Champaign, IL 61820	illinois.edu
12	Western Illinois University	1 University Circle, Macomb, IL 61455	wiu.edu

2. Public 2-Year Community Colleges — 48

Illinois has 48 public community colleges serving 39 community-college districts. The system includes the seven City Colleges of Chicago, four colleges operated by Illinois Eastern Community Colleges, and numerous single-college districts throughout the state.

#	Institution	Address	Official Website
1	Black Hawk College	6600 34th Avenue, Moline, IL 61265	bhc.edu
2	Carl Sandburg College	2400 Tom L. Wilson Boulevard, Galesburg, IL 61401	sandburg.edu
3	City Colleges of Chicago — Harold Washington College	30 East Lake Street, Chicago, IL 60601	ccc.edu
4	City Colleges of Chicago — Harry S Truman College	1145 West Wilson Avenue, Chicago, IL 60640	ccc.edu
5	City Colleges of Chicago — Kennedy-King College	6301 South Halsted Street, Chicago, IL 60621	ccc.edu
6	City Colleges of Chicago — Malcolm X College	1900 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, IL 60612	ccc.edu
7	City Colleges of Chicago — Olive-Harvey College	10001 South Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago, IL 60628	ccc.edu
8	City Colleges of Chicago — Richard J. Daley College	7500 South Pulaski Road, Chicago, IL 60652	ccc.edu
9	City Colleges of Chicago — Wilbur Wright College	4300 North Narragansett Avenue, Chicago, IL 60634	ccc.edu
10	College of DuPage	425 Fawell Boulevard, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137	cod.edu
11	College of Lake County	19351 West Washington Street, Grayslake, IL 60030	clcillinois.edu
12	Danville Area Community College	2000 East Main Street, Danville, IL 61834	dacc.edu
13	Elgin Community College	1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin, IL 60123	elgin.edu
14	Harper College	1200 West Algonquin Road, Palatine, IL 60067	harpercollege.edu
15	Heartland Community College	1500 West Raab Road, Normal, IL 61761	heartland.edu
16	Highland Community College	2998 West Pearl City Road, Freeport, IL 61032	highland.edu
17	Illinois Central College	1 College Drive, East Peoria, IL 61635	icc.edu
18	Frontier Community College	2 Frontier Drive, Fairfield, IL 62837	iecc.edu
19	Lincoln Trail College	11220 State Highway 1, Robinson, IL 62454	iecc.edu
20	Olney Central College	305 North West Street, Olney, IL 62450	iecc.edu
21	Wabash Valley College	2200 College Drive, Mount Carmel, IL 62863	iecc.edu
22	Illinois Valley Community College	815 North Orlando Smith Street, Oglesby, IL 61348	ivcc.edu
23	John A. Logan College	700 Logan College Road, Carterville, IL 62918	jalc.edu
24	John Wood Community College	1301 South 48th Street, Quincy, IL 62305	jwcc.edu
25	Joliet Junior College	1215 Houbolt Road, Joliet, IL 60431	jjc.edu
26	Kankakee Community College	100 College Drive, Kankakee, IL 60901	kcc.edu
27	Kaskaskia College	27210 College Road, Centralia, IL 62801	kaskaskia.edu
28	Kishwaukee College	21193 Malta Road, Malta, IL 60150	kish.edu
29	Lake Land College	5001 Lake Land Boulevard, Mattoon, IL 61938	lakelandcollege.edu
30	Lewis & Clark Community College	5800 Godfrey Road, Godfrey, IL 62035	lc.edu
31	Lincoln Land Community College	5250 Shepherd Road, Springfield, IL 62794	llcc.edu
32	McHenry County College	8900 Northwest Highway, Crystal Lake, IL 60012	mchenry.edu
33	Moraine Valley Community College	9000 College Parkway, Palos Hills, IL 60465	morainevalley.edu
34	Morton College	3800 South Central Avenue, Cicero, IL 60804	morton.edu
35	Oakton College	1600 East Golf Road, Des Plaines, IL 60016	oakton.edu
36	Parkland College	2400 West Bradley Avenue, Champaign, IL 61821	parkland.edu
37	Prairie State College	202 South Halsted Street, Chicago Heights, IL 60411	prairiestate.edu
38	Rend Lake College	468 North Ken Gray Parkway, Ina, IL 62846	rlc.edu
39	Richland Community College	One College Park, Decatur, IL 62526	richland.edu
40	Rock Valley College	3301 North Mulford Road, Rockford, IL 61114	rockvalleycollege.edu
41	Sauk Valley Community College	173 Illinois Route 2, Dixon, IL 61021	svcc.edu
42	Shawnee Community College	8364 Shawnee College Road, Ullin, IL 62992	shawneecc.edu
43	South Suburban College	15800 South State Street, South Holland, IL 60473	ssc.edu
44	Southeastern Illinois College	3575 College Road, Harrisburg, IL 62946	sic.edu
45	Southwestern Illinois College	2500 Carlyle Avenue, Belleville, IL 62221	swic.edu
46	Spoon River College	23235 North County Highway 22, Canton, IL 61520	src.edu
47	Triton College	2000 Fifth Avenue, River Grove, IL 60171	triton.edu
48	Waubonsee Community College	Route 47 at Waubonsee Drive, Sugar Grove, IL 60554	waubonsee.edu

3. Private Institutions

Illinois has one of the largest independent higher-education sectors in the country. According to the Illinois Board of Higher Education, the state currently has 104 independent not-for-profit colleges and universities and 15 independent for-profit institutions.

Why are the private institutions not reproduced as a static list here?

Illinois' private higher-education directory changes more frequently than the public system. Institutions can merge, close, change names, relocate, or change authorization status. For accuracy, the official Illinois Board of Higher Education database should be used as the authoritative live directory.

The IBHE Institution Profiles database currently allows users to filter institutions by Public Universities, Community Colleges, Private Not-For-Profit Institutions, Private For-Profit Institutions, and Out-of-State Institutions.

View the Official Illinois Board of Higher Education Institution Profiles

104

Independent Not-for-Profit

Colleges & Universities

15

Independent For-Profit

Institutions

4. Additional Postsecondary Institutions

Illinois also has institutions headquartered outside the state that operate authorized programs or locations in Illinois. In addition, the Illinois Board of Higher Education oversees a large network of private business and vocational schools.

Private Business & Vocational Schools:

These schools are different from degree-granting colleges and universities. IBHE maintains a separate directory of approved Private Business & Vocational Schools (PBVS), including their main campuses and extension sites.

View the Official Illinois PBVS Directory

Illinois Higher-Education Summary:

• Public 4-Year Universities: 12
• Public 2-Year Community Colleges: 48
• Independent Private Not-for-Profit Institutions: 104
• Independent Private For-Profit Institutions: 15
• 179 institutions across these four major sectors based on the current IBHE sector counts.

Note: The 179 figure does not include out-of-state institutions, private business and vocational schools, extension campuses, or other specialized postsecondary providers.

Sources / References

1. Illinois Board of Higher Education — Schools by Sector
   IBHE Degree-Granting Colleges & Universities
   Official Illinois source organizing institutions by public universities, community colleges, independent nonprofit, independent for-profit, and out-of-state sectors.
2. Illinois Board of Higher Education — Institution Profiles
   Official Illinois Institution Profiles
   Official database containing institution profiles, classifications, programs, and institutional information.
3. Illinois Community College Board — List of Illinois Community Colleges
   Illinois Community Colleges
   Official ICCB source listing the state's public community colleges, including the City Colleges of Chicago and Illinois Eastern Community Colleges.
4. Illinois Community College Board — 2026 Data Book
   2026 Data & Characteristics of the Illinois Public Community College System
   Current statewide data for the Illinois public community-college system.
5. Illinois Board of Higher Education — Private Business & Vocational Schools
   Official PBVS Directory
   Official directory of approved private business and vocational schools and extension sites.
6. Illinois Board of Higher Education — Higher Education Organization
   Organization of Higher Education in Illinois
   Official overview of Illinois' public universities, community colleges, and independent institutions.
7. Illinois Board of Higher Education — 2025–26 Enrollment Data
   IBHE First Look — Fall Enrollment 2025–26
   Recent official statewide data confirming participation of all 12 Illinois public universities.
8. National Center for Education Statistics — IPEDS
   NCES IPEDS
   Federal higher-education data source for institutional verification and comparison.

Last reviewed: August 2026

This directory is provided for educational and informational purposes. Institution names, addresses, websites, programs, accreditation, ownership, and authorization status can change. Students and families should verify current admission, tuition, financial-aid, accreditation, and program information directly with the institution and the appropriate Illinois state agency.