Top Ranked Programs
University of Illinois Chicago's program mix is anchored in Business, which accounts for 15% of degree output, followed by Engineering at 12% and Social Sciences at 6%. That balance of applied-business, health, and engineering fields shapes the institution's earnings profile and connects graduates to Chicago's diversified labor market. Computer Science is the program combining the largest cohort scale with strong earnings — a combination that makes it a key driver of the university's overall financial outcomes. Across 58 programs serving roughly 5,236 students annually, 47 meet Azimuth's ranking threshold. The largest programs by cohort reflect that applied orientation. The Biology, General program graduates 426 students annually with median earnings of $59,119 four years after enrollment, and Azimuth ranks the program #110 nationally [per the program-ranking methodology](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) among nonprofit four-year institutions. The Psychology, General program graduates 399 students with median earnings of $52,736, while The Computer Science program graduates 328 students with median earnings of $120,470. On the earnings side, Computer Science leads at $120,470 with a cohort of 328, and Azimuth ranks it #43 nationally for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Mechanical Engineering follows at $87,384, and Nursing posts median earnings of $87,037 — both reflecting strong early-career demand in quantitative and technical fields. Several of these programs are high-mobility pathways where graduates enter the workforce directly and four-year earnings reflect labor-market outcomes — particularly Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, and Biology, General. Psychology, General and Nursing are more likely grad-school-dependent pathways where four-year earnings undercount lifetime trajectory because a meaningful share of graduates continue to professional or graduate school. The university's research infrastructure, which includes the Business Career Center and the Center for Applied Analytics per the department's research page, supports both direct-to-workforce and graduate-school-bound students. The [supply-demand map](/analysis/supply-demand-map-college-degrees/) provides context for how University of Illinois Chicago's dominant program families align with national wage trends.