Medical Assistant Schools in Illinois, Ranked On What Graduates Owe And Earn

15 accredited institutions in Illinois report enough federal data on this program to be compared. They are ranked here on a single measure: how many months of gross pay it takes a graduate to cover the median debt.

See The Ranking

U.S. Department of Education data. No school paid to be listed.

Across the 15 ranked programs in Illinois, the median graduate needs 4.4 months of gross pay to cover a median federal debt of $10,656, against median earnings of $32,224 one year after completion.

That is faster than the national median of 4.9 months for this field, measured across the 840 institutions in our national medical assistant schools ranking. The best performer in the state is Lewis and Clark Community College in Godfrey, at 2.4 months.

Every figure on this page is recalculated on Illinois institutions only. Nothing is carried over from the national page.

At A Glance

What the federal data says about medical assistant schools in Illinois

4.4 mo

state median to cover the debt

$10,656

median debt at completion

$32,224

median earnings, one year out

50%

median completion rate

The Ranking

15 medical assistant schools in Illinois, ranked by months of gross pay to cover the debt

Lower is better.

#	School	Type	Award	Months	Debt	Earnings	Completion
1	Lewis and Clark Community CollegeGodfrey, IL	Public	Certificate	2.4	$6,360	$32,224	44%
2	Midwestern Career CollegeChicago, IL	for-profit	Certificate	2.8	$7,521	$31,998	54%
3	College of DuPageGlen Ellyn, IL	Public	Certificate	3.2	$10,656	$40,196	25%
4	William Rainey Harper CollegePalatine, IL	Public	Certificate	3.3	$9,834	$36,111	48%
5	First Institute of Travel Inc.Crystal Lake, IL	for-profit	Certificate	3.4	$9,500	$33,597	72%
6	City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X CollegeChicago, IL	Public	Certificate	3.8	$11,000	$35,140	18%
7	Lincoln College of Technology-Melrose ParkMelrose Park, IL	for-profit	Certificate	4.3	$11,237	$31,098	68%
8	Midwest Technical Institute-IllinoisSpringfield, IL	for-profit	Certificate	4.4	$9,500	$25,826	69%
9	CALC Institute of TechnologyAlton, IL	for-profit	Certificate	4.4	$8,360	$23,038	50%
10	State Career CollegeGurnee, IL	for-profit	Certificate	4.4	$9,500	$26,123	74%
11	Black Hawk CollegeMoline, IL	Public	Associate	4.9	$16,232	$39,761	40%
12	Southern Illinois University-CarbondaleCarbondale, IL	Public	Associate	5.1	$17,000	$40,034	62%
13	Rasmussen University-IllinoisRockford, IL	for-profit	Certificate	5.7	$14,042	$29,532	43%
14	Fox CollegeTinley Park, IL	for-profit	Associate	6.1	$21,579	$42,418	71%
15	Lincoln Land Community CollegeSpringfield, IL	Public	Associate	6.4	$16,681	$31,324	48%

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, Most Recent Cohorts by Field of Study and by Institution (published 9 June 2026). Debt is the median federal Stafford and Grad PLUS loan debt of completers in this program; earnings are median earnings one year after completion. Where a school offers the program at both certificate and associate level, the shorter payback is shown. Completion is the institution’s published rate, not the program’s.

The Top Five, In Detail

The five fastest payback programs in Illinois, one by one

Lewis and Clark Community College

Godfrey, IL

Lewis and Clark Community College is a public institution in Godfrey. Its medical assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $6,360 and report median earnings of $32,224 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 2.4 months of gross pay: the fastest payback in the state, and 2.0 months faster than the Illinois state median of 4.4. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 44% completion rate.

Midwestern Career College

Chicago, IL

Midwestern Career College is a private for-profit institution in Chicago. Its medical assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $7,521 and report median earnings of $31,998 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 2.8 months of gross pay: the second fastest in the state, and 1.6 months faster than the Illinois state median of 4.4. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 54% completion rate.

College of DuPage

Glen Ellyn, IL

College of DuPage is a public institution in Glen Ellyn. Its medical assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $10,656 and report median earnings of $40,196 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.2 months of gross pay: the third fastest in the state, and 1.2 months faster than the Illinois state median of 4.4. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 25% completion rate.

William Rainey Harper College

Palatine, IL

William Rainey Harper College is a public institution in Palatine. Its medical assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,834 and report median earnings of $36,111 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.3 months of gross pay: fourth in the state, and 1.1 months faster than the Illinois state median of 4.4. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 48% completion rate.

First Institute of Travel Inc.

Crystal Lake, IL

First Institute of Travel Inc. is a private for-profit institution in Crystal Lake. Its medical assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,500 and report median earnings of $33,597 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.4 months of gross pay: fifth in the state, and 1.0 months faster than the Illinois state median of 4.4. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 72% completion rate.

Read It Carefully

What this ranking does not measure

Absence from this page is not a verdict. The Department of Education suppresses figures for programs with small cohorts, so a small, excellent school will often have no publishable data at all. Schools that enroll no students on federal aid are outside this dataset entirely.

The measure is a ratio, not a repayment plan, and it counts federal loan debt only. Cash payments, private loans and employer sponsorship are invisible here. Local wages shape earnings as much as the school does, which is exactly why comparing inside one state, as this page does, is more informative than comparing across the country.

Other States

The same program, another state

All states Arizona California Colorado Connecticut Florida Georgia Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota New Jersey New York North Carolina Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Texas Utah Washington

Other Programs in Illinois

Comparing a different trade in Illinois

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For ILLINOIS School Operators

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