Chemistry at University of Illinois Chicago

A Chemistry degree from UIC costs less in borrowing than you'll find at most comparable programs—$20,474 versus a national median of $24,000—and based on similar programs in Illinois, first-year earnings around $44,860 put graduates in a reasonable position to manage that debt. The 0.46 debt-to-earnings ratio suggests monthly loan payments would consume about 5% of gross income, a manageable burden for a STEM graduate. By year four, when median earnings reach $47,660, chemistry graduates from UIC appear to track closely with peers at other major Illinois universities like UIUC ($47,034) and SIUE ($46,659).

The caveat here is that DOE suppressed actual first-year earnings data for UIC Chemistry due to small graduate samples, so that initial $44,860 figure represents what other Illinois chemistry programs typically produce rather than verified outcomes for this specific school. The four-year number of $47,660 is reported data, which gives some confidence that graduates do progress toward typical chemistry salaries. Half of UIC's students receive Pell grants, meaning many come from lower-income backgrounds where even modest debt matters more—but at least the debt load here is below average for the field.

For families weighing this program, the financial picture looks solid if your student can complete the degree in four years and finds chemistry-related employment. The uncertainty around that first-year figure means you're betting on UIC's outcomes matching its in-state peers, which seems reasonable given the later-career convergence.