Software Engineering Degrees Near Chicago for 2027
The Chicago area has 3 programs titled software engineering at 2 schools, and 16 computer science programs. This guide covers each one, what it costs, and what software developers earn in the metro area. Fewer than 5 programs titled software engineering sit inside Chicago’s city limits, so this guide covers the whole Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area.
Kevin ToFounder & Editor·B.S. in Computer Science, Temple University·Updated
Software engineering programs
3
titled software engineering
ABET-accredited
0
ABET’s list, 2026-09-30
Computer science programs
16
IPEDS 2024
Median pay, software developers
$134,380
BLS OEWS, May 2025
Key takeaways
01The Chicago area has 3 degrees titled software engineering, 1 bachelor’s and 2 master’s, at 2 schools, plus 16 computer science programs. Loyola University Chicago ranks first among the area’s bachelor’s programs, with a score of 33.0 out of 100, #62 nationally. Each program below is checked against the school’s own page. Across Illinois as a whole, 3 programs carry the title.
02At Chicago’s public schools, the median undergraduate tuition for 2023–24 was $10,343 in state and $20,686 out of state, so residency saves about $10,343 a year at the median. Private schools had a median of $47,619. These IPEDS figures are one per school and leave out fees, housing and financial aid.
03Software developers in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area earned a median of $134,380 in May 2025, against $132,110 across Illinois and $135,980 nationally. The metro area employed 40,370 of them. Nationally, BLS projects the occupation to grow 10.2% from 2025 to 2035, against 3.5% for all occupations.
04Prices near Chicago were 3.6% above the national average in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s measure, and housing stood at 112 against a national 100. At national prices, the metro area’s developer median goes as far as about $129,710. BEA’s 2024 figures are its latest, a year behind the pay data.
05This page covers the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area only. The Illinois guide covers all 3 programs titled software engineering across the state, 1 bachelor’s and 2 master’s, with the same comparisons of cost and pay, so a program elsewhere in the state can be weighed against one here.
This guide
Studying software engineering here
A degree titled software engineering puts design, testing and the management of large software projects at the center, where computer science centers on computation itself. Chicago offers both, and many software engineers hold either one.
What this page covers
Software engineering programs: the 3 bachelor’s and master’s degrees near Chicago titled software engineering, each checked against the school’s own page.
Computer science programs: the area’s 16 bachelor’s and master’s programs in computer science, from federal data.
Online programs: software engineering degrees from our rankings that can be completed online.
Not included: associate degrees, certificates, bootcamps, doctoral programs and degrees in related fields such as information technology.
Methodology
How we ranked these programs
Programs near Chicago are ranked against each other at the same degree level, highest score first. The score is out of 100 and comes from our national rankings, so a program carries the same score on every page of this site. It isn’t curved for Chicago: each factor is measured against fixed national standards, which is why even the strongest program here can sit well below 100.
The bachelor’s score
Loyola University Chicago: #62 of 75 nationally
Loyola University Chicago leads near Chicago with 33.0 out of 100
Across the country the median bachelor’s score is 56.7 and the highest is 87.0. Its biggest gap is cost, where it earns 0 of 25 points. Every scored program is in Best Bachelor’s in Software Engineering.
Scored factors
100 pts total
Cost25 pts
The school’s average net price after grants (IPEDS), in fixed dollar tiers.
Under $12,00025 pts
$12,000 to $15,99920 pts
$16,000 to $19,99915 pts
$20,000 to $24,99910 pts
$25,000 to $31,9995 pts
$32,000 or more0 pts
Completion35 pts
The school’s eight-year completion rate for all entering students (IPEDS Outcome Measures), as a share of the points.
ABET accreditation25 pts
Full points if the program is on ABET’s own accredited list, none if not.
Program size15 pts
Graduates a year, on a log scale that reaches full points at 100.
The master’s score
DePaul: #31 of 44 nationally
DePaul leads near Chicago with 40.7 out of 100
Across the country the median master’s score is 52.0 and the highest is 86.9. Its biggest gap is cost, where it earns 16 of 40 points. Every scored program is in Software Engineering Master’s Programs.
Scored factors
100 pts total
Cost40 pts
The school’s graduate tuition (IPEDS), in fixed dollar tiers.
Under $10,00040 pts
$10,000 to $14,99932 pts
$15,000 to $19,99924 pts
$20,000 to $29,99916 pts
$30,000 to $39,9998 pts
$40,000 or more0 pts
Program size30 pts
Graduates a year, on a log scale that reaches full points at 500.
Research activity15 pts
The school’s Carnegie research class, from IPEDS.
R115
R29
Doctoral/professional3
Other0
ABET-accredited department15 pts
Full points if the school’s software engineering or computer science bachelor’s is on ABET’s list.
Each program is ranked against the others near Chicago at the same degree level, by the score our national rankings use. Tuition is IPEDS 2023–24; grad rate is the school’s. Full details for a ranked program are on its ranking page.
Bachelor’s
Master’s
Top 3 near Chicago
Not ranked
Bachelor’s in software engineering
1 program
#1 near Chicago
33.0of 100
Loyola University Chicago
Chicago, IL · about 11 mi from central Chicago
BSCampus
In-state
$50,270
Out-of-state
$50,270
Completion
71%
Electives build web, distributed and database projects using Extreme Programming
Loyola's BS in software engineering sits in the College of Arts and Sciences, and the suggested four-year plan totals 122 hours. The major itself is 61 hours. Required courses include Discrete Structures, Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming, Introduction to Computer Systems, Data Structures I and II, Object-Oriented Design, Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues in Computing, and Software Engineering. You pick nine credit hours of restricted electives drawn from software engineering topics, such as Requirements Engineering, Formal Methods in Software Engineering, Software Quality and Compiler Construction.
A six-credit practicum slot works as the capstone, chosen from a list that includes an internship, independent study and security and privacy work, and the page encourages you to take these in junior and senior years. Math is Applied Calculus I or Calculus I plus one statistics course. High-level electives have you write major projects in database programming, markup language transformation, distributed programming for large clusters and client/server web programming, using practices such as Extreme Programming. Arts and Sciences also requires a language through the 102 level, and an AP CS A score of 4 or 5 earns credit for the first programming course.
Master’s in software engineering
2 programs
#1 near Chicago
40.7of 100
DePaul
Chicago, IL · about 4 mi from central Chicago
MSCampus + online
Tuition
$22,135
Out-of-state
$22,135
Grads/yr
25
Online
The only master’s program near Chicago offered online
Three concentrations, including AI in software engineering and game systems
DePaul's MS in software engineering is offered in person or fully online, and the page says every lecture is captured and available online. It is STEM-designated, which matters if you are an international student who wants to extend your stay after graduating. You pick one of three concentrations: Software Development and Architecture, Real-Time Software and Game Systems, or AI in Software Engineering. The curriculum covers software project management, maintenance, testing and quality assurance, construction, architecture and design, and requirements engineering.
The program also stresses communication and presentation skills in a team-based development environment. Learning outcomes include applying testing techniques at module, integration and system levels and collaborating in teams to develop a significantly sized software system from conceptualization to completion. The real-time concentration covers game physics, networking and engine tooling, with uses in defense work, electronic trading and mobile development beyond games. Incoming CDM graduate students can apply for scholarships, and assistantships and funded research opportunities are listed too.
#2 near Chicago
37.7of 100
Loyola University Chicago
Chicago, IL · about 11 mi from central Chicago
MSCampus
Tuition
$21,375
Out-of-state
$21,375
Grads/yr
13
Accelerated Master's Pathway lets undergrads finish in a fifth year
Loyola's MS in software engineering requires between 30 and 40 credit hours, typically 10 to 14 courses. The range exists because four foundation courses, COMP 400A to 400D, can be waived based on prior undergraduate or graduate coursework, and each waiver subtracts credit hours. The required courses are Social and Ethical Issues in Computing and Intermediate Object-Oriented Development. You then choose restricted electives worth nine credit hours across three or more courses, with one or more from Group 1, which includes web services programming, enterprise software development, concurrent programming, distributed systems and server-side development.
Group 2 includes operating systems, open source computing, human-computer interaction, database programming and high-performance computing. Electives can include up to 6 credit hours of an independent project or an internship, and the sample plan puts an internship in the summer. The page says this degree places more weight on software development, and points anyone who wants a managerial focus to the MS in Information Technology. Loyola undergraduates can use the Accelerated Master's Pathway to take up to 12 shared credit hours in senior year and finish in a fifth year.
Compare
Programs side by side
Chicago software engineering programs compared, by level
Tuition: IPEDS 2023–24, at the program’s level (a master’s figure is the school’s graduate average). Grad rate: the school’s six-year rate for bachelor’s students; N/A on master’s rows, because federal data has no graduation rate for master’s programs. Grads/yr: IPEDS, three-year average. ABET: ABET’s list, retrieved 2026-09-30. #: the program’s rank among Chicago’s ranked programs at its level; NR, not ranked. Score: out of 100, the same score as on the ranking pages.
Nearby
Within driving distance
Programs in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area whose campus is outside Chicago’s city limits.
City limits: Census TIGER incorporated place boundaries; campus locations: IPEDS 2024. Distances are straight-line miles from the city’s Census internal point, rounded.
Computer science
Computer science programs
9 schools, 16 programs in the table below.
Computer science is the neighboring degree, and many software engineers hold it. These rows come from federal data, not from each school’s page.
Tuition: IPEDS 2023–24, in-state, before fees and aid; undergraduate for a bachelor’s, and for a master’s the school-wide average across graduate students, which excludes program fees. School grad rate: the school’s six-year rate for bachelor’s students (IPEDS); N/A on master’s rows, because federal data has no graduation rate for master’s programs. ABET: on ABET’s computing (CAC) or engineering (EAC) list, retrieved 2026-10-05; a blank cell means not accredited. A school is in the table when it has at least two of a tuition figure, a grad rate or ABET accreditation, and a program page we could link; the rest are listed under it. SE track: named on the school’s own page.
Cost
What it costs
Public, in-state
$10,343
median of 3 schools
Public, out-of-state
$20,686
median of 3 schools
Private
$47,619
median of 6 schools
Living near Chicago is worth about $10,343 a year in tuition at the median public school, the gap between the two public medians. Over a four-year degree that is roughly $41,372, before any change in rates.
Prices near Chicago were 103.6 against a national 100 in 2024, and housing 112, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s Regional Price Parities. 2024 is BEA’s latest year, a year behind the May 2025 pay figures on this page.
Tuition: IPEDS 2023–24 undergraduate tuition, one figure per school, for the 9 schools with a bachelor’s program in this guide; a median needs at least 3 schools. Excludes fees, housing and aid. Prices: BEA Regional Price Parities by metro area, 2024, all items and housing services.
Job market
The software job market
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area employed 40,370 software developers in May 2025. Nationally, BLS projects software developer jobs to grow 10.2% from 2025 to 2035, against 3.5% for all occupations.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, metropolitan areas, May 2025, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. Metro estimates are published for fewer occupations than state estimates; the occupations BLS doesn’t publish here are left out. Growth: BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35, national.
Who hires
Who hires software developers
We don’t list company names: no source counts software hiring by employer the same way in every metro. What the Census Bureau does count is the businesses themselves, by industry, in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area.
Industry
Businesses
Employees
Payroll per employee
Computer systems design and related services
5,425
70,994
$127,600
Software publishers
535
29,114
$177,300
Data processing, hosting and related services
526
20,207
$120,600
Computer and electronic product manufacturing
416
21,034
$85,000
The first three of those industries employ 2.8% of the metro area’s private-sector workers, against 2.6% nationally, close to the national share.
Of these industries, computer systems design and related services employs the most people in the metro area, 70,994, while software publishers pays the most per employee, $177,300.
Businesses, employees (mid-March) and annual payroll: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, metropolitan areas and United States (cbp23msa, cbp23us), private sector, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area; payroll per employee covers every job in the industry, not only developers.
Pay
What software developers earn
$83,82010th
$104,53025th
$134,380median
$167,65075th
$203,41090th
Software developers, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, BLS OEWS May 2025. National median: $135,980.
The metro area’s median is $134,380, $1,600 below the national $135,980. Half of the metro area’s software developers earn between $104,530 and $167,650.
BEA puts prices in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area at 103.6 against a national 100 (2024), so the median goes as far as $129,710 would nationally, $6,270 less than the national median.
BEA price parities, 2024; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, metropolitan areas, May 2025.
Steps
How to become a software engineer
The path to software engineering near Chicago is the same one people take everywhere: a degree, real experience before you graduate, and a first job search. What changes is the schools you can choose from and who’s hiring nearby. Here are the five steps, with Chicago’s options in each.
1
Start with a bachelor’s degree
Most software developer jobs ask for a bachelor's degree, and you don’t need work experience to get your first one. Around Chicago you’ve got one bachelor’s program titled software engineering, at Loyola University Chicago, plus 23 computer science bachelor’s programs across the metro if you want a wider net. Before you fall for one, compare what they cost; the tuition figures above make that quick.
2
Pick between software engineering and computer science
Employers hire from both majors. Software engineering leans toward building and maintaining large systems as a team; computer science gives you a broader base in theory. Around Chicago, that’s three software engineering programs and 38 computer science programs across the metro, so you really can choose. An easy way to decide: put Loyola University Chicago’s course list next to Chicago State’s and see which you’d rather spend four years in. Compare them.
3
Build experience before you graduate
Internships are often what turn a degree into a job offer. When you talk to DePaul and Loyola University Chicago, ask how they connect students with internships. Loyola University Chicago includes a capstone or senior project where you build real software with a team. With 5,425 computer systems design firms in the metro, a summer role close to home is realistic.
4
Know where licensing stands
You don’t need a license to work as a software engineer, and there’s no longer a licensing exam for it: the last one was given in April 2019. Accreditation still matters if you might want a license or certification later, since those often ask for an ABET-accredited degree. The closest accredited software engineering program to Chicago is Milwaukee School of Engineering’s bachelor’s in Milwaukee, about 84 miles away. Check any program’s accreditation before you apply.
5
Look for your first job nearby
The Chicago area had 40,370 software developers in May 2025, earning a median of $134,380. The biggest software industries here are computer systems design (70,994 jobs) and software publishing (29,114 jobs), so start your search with those firms. Ask your program which local employers hire its graduates, and go to its career fairs from your first year. Across the country there are about 95,300 openings a year, so you can widen the search if you’re willing to move.
Online options
Online software engineering degrees
If no program near Chicago fits, these are the highest-scoring online programs in our rankings. Confirm with each school that it enrolls students living near Chicago.
Tuition: IPEDS 2023–24 out-of-state, the rate an online student from another state usually pays (a master’s figure is the school’s graduate average); a published rate is the school’s own price. National rank and score: our national ranking at the program’s level.
How many software engineering programs are near Chicago?
3 degrees titled software engineering, 1 bachelor’s and 2 master’s, at 2 schools. 0 of them are on ABET’s accredited list.
What is the best software engineering school near Chicago?
Loyola University Chicago ranks first of the 1 ranked bachelor’s programs near Chicago, with a score of 33.0 out of 100 (#62 nationally). The score combines completion, net price, ABET accreditation and program size.
How much does a software engineering degree cost near Chicago?
Across Chicago’s public schools in this guide, median undergraduate tuition for 2023–24 was $10,343 for residents and $20,686 for nonresidents; at private schools the median was $47,619. These IPEDS figures exclude fees and housing.
How much do software engineers make near Chicago?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that includes software engineers, earned a median of $134,380 near Chicago in May 2025. The 10th percentile was $83,820 and the 90th $203,410.
Is Chicago pay worth it after cost of living?
BEA puts Chicago’s prices at 103.6 against a national 100 in 2024. Divided by that, the developer median of $134,380 is worth about $129,710 at national prices.
Who hires software engineers near Chicago?
No source counts software hiring by company the same way in every metro, so we don’t name employers. The Census Bureau counted 5,425 computer systems design businesses in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area in 2023, employing 70,994 people. Nationally, the industries that employ the most software developers are computer systems design and related services, software publishers and management of companies and enterprises.
Can Chicago residents take a software engineering degree online?
Yes. Kennesaw State, Minnesota-Crookston and University of Arizona are among the online software engineering programs in our rankings. Check with each school that it enrolls students living near Chicago.
2NCES IPEDS institutional charges, 2023–24Tuition at the program’s level, and undergraduate tuition per school for the cost medians. Excludes fees, housing and aid.
3NCES IPEDS graduation ratesThe school’s six-year graduation rate, for the whole school rather than the program; IPEDS DRVGR2023 where the main pull has no figure.
4Each school’s own program pageProgram name, delivery, credits, and every bullet on the program cards, quoted from the saved page. Read .
13NCES IPEDS HD2024: campus coordinatesCampus latitude and longitude, for the distance from Chicago to the nearest ABET-accredited software engineering program (straight line).
