Best Statistics Programs in the Midwest (2026)
Updated
Regional list from Best Statistics Programs in the United States
This page ranks the 17 Statistics programs in the Midwest by median earnings of Statistics graduates four years after completing. University of Chicago ranks 1st with median earnings of $130,189 for its graduates four years after completing.
Across the listed schools, the figure ranges from $130,189 to $57,318, with a median of $90,388. For 1 of the 17 listed programs the figure is the two-year completion median rather than the four-year one.
15 of the schools are public and 2 are private nonprofit, an 88% public share. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor ranks 16th on Azimuth's composite ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions, the best on this list. University of Illinois Chicago posts the lowest average net price at $10,974.
The ranked list
| Rank | School | Program Earnings | Average net price | Net price, families under $30K | Admission rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Chicago · Chicago, IL | $130,189 | $14,860 | -$1,264* | 4.5% |
| University of Chicago reports $130,189 in median earnings for its Statistics graduates four years after completing, alongside an admission rate of 4%. | |||||
| 2 | University of Iowa · Iowa City, IA | $123,676 | $22,531 | $15,316 | 83.6% |
| An average net price of $15,316 for families earning under $30,000 coincides with median earnings of $123,676 for Statistics graduates of University of Iowa four years after completing. | |||||
| 3 | Northwestern University · Evanston, IL | $122,682 | $29,167 | $1,764 | 7.7% |
| Graduates across all fields who borrowed left with a median of $15,000 in federal loans at Northwestern University, a private nonprofit university in Evanston. | |||||
| 4 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor · Ann Arbor, MI | $109,466 | $13,138 | $1,043 | 15.6% |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor holds an Azimuth composite rank of 16th among nonprofit four-year institutions, and its Statistics graduates earn a median of $109,466 four years after completing. | |||||
| 5 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign · Champaign, IL | $105,978 | $14,355 | $2,038 | 42.4% |
| With 333 graduates in the earnings cohort, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign posts median earnings of $105,978 for its Statistics graduates four years after completing. | |||||
| 6 | Purdue University-Main Campus · West Lafayette, IN | $104,047 | $14,600 | $5,098 | 49.9% |
| Purdue University-Main Campus admits 50% of applicants and reports median earnings of $104,047 for its Statistics graduates four years after completing. | |||||
| 7 | University of Wisconsin-Madison · Madison, WI | $99,210 | $17,354 | $4,200 | 45.2% |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison ranks 7th on this list, and its Statistics graduates earn a median of $99,210 four years after completing. | |||||
| 8 | Michigan State University · East Lansing, MI | $93,930 | $19,680 | $7,068 | 84.8% |
| Michigan State University reports an average net price of $19,680, and its Statistics graduates earn a median of $93,930 four years after completing. | |||||
| 9 | Miami University-Oxford · Oxford, OH | $90,388 | $28,384 | $16,015 | 75.4% |
| Miami University-Oxford ranks 9th on this list, with median earnings of $90,388 for its Statistics graduates four years after completing and an admission rate of 75%. | |||||
| 10 | Central Michigan University · Mount Pleasant, MI | $81,853 | $17,597 | $12,185 | 89.8% |
| Graduates across all fields who borrowed left with a median of $27,000 in federal loans at Central Michigan University, a public university in Mount Pleasant. | |||||
| 11 | University of Minnesota-Twin Cities · Minneapolis, MN | $80,993 | $16,778 | $6,642 | 79.8% |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities holds an Azimuth composite rank of 107th among nonprofit four-year institutions, and its Statistics graduates earn a median of $80,993 four years after completing. | |||||
| 12 | University of Missouri-Columbia · Columbia, MO | $76,037 | $20,268 | $13,841 | 78.5% |
| An average net price of $13,841 for families earning under $30,000 coincides with median earnings of $76,037 for Statistics graduates of University of Missouri-Columbia four years after completing. | |||||
| 13 | Grand Valley State University · Allendale, MI | $74,229 | $16,317 | $12,272 | 83.0% |
| Grand Valley State University reports median earnings of $74,229 for its Statistics graduates four years after completing, with 48 graduates in the earnings cohort. | |||||
| 14 | Iowa State University · Ames, IA | $72,581 | $18,589 | $10,582 | 88.7% |
| Graduates across all fields who borrowed left with a median of $22,869 in federal loans at Iowa State University, a public university in Ames. | |||||
| 15 | University of Minnesota-Duluth · Duluth, MN | $71,279 | $18,743 | $7,256 | 88.8% |
| University of Minnesota-Duluth admits 89% of applicants and carries an average net price of $7,256 for families earning under $30,000. | |||||
| 16 | University of Illinois Chicago · Chicago, IL | $68,585 | $10,974 | $7,529 | 77.4% |
| An average net price of $10,974 and a school-wide median federal debt of $16,704 accompany University of Illinois Chicago's Statistics earnings of $68,585 four years after completing. | |||||
| 17 | University of Northern Iowa · Cedar Falls, IA | $57,318 | $15,901 | $10,863 | 92.7% |
| University of Northern Iowa ranks 17th on this list and posts an admission rate of 93%, with an average net price of $15,901. | |||||
* Net price can be negative: when grants and scholarships exceed the listed cost of attendance, students can receive the difference as a refund for other expenses.
How this list is ordered
Programs are ordered by the median earnings of their Statistics graduates four years after completing, highest first. Only programs with a reported earnings cohort in the Midwest appear. The figures are medians for federally aided completers of each program who were working and not enrolled, measured four years after completing. For 1 of the 17 listed programs the figure is the two-year completion median rather than the four-year one. The metric does not adjust for graduate school enrollment, cost, or who enrolls, and it is not a measure of teaching quality. University of Chicago leads University of Iowa by $6,513, and the spread from the top of the list to the bottom is $72,871.
Job market context in the Midwest
Graduates of Statistics programs in the Midwest enter a labor market that links to occupations such as Data Scientists and Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary. The median annual wage across those occupations is $99,354, and a quarter of workers in those occupations earn less than $77,249. Projections for 2024 to 2034 show about 5,600 openings a year, or about 323 openings a year for every hundred graduates, with more projected openings than graduates. Projections for 2024 to 2034 put employment in those occupations about 21.1% higher. Wages and top occupations exclude management occupations; openings include them. The ranking above uses graduate earnings four years after completing, not the occupation-wide wage figures described here.