-16%
Undergraduate enrollment
Undergraduate enrollment at Western Illinois University fell 16% between 2021 and 2024 (5.3k → 4.4k).
Illinois · Public · Predominantly bachelor's
Western Illinois University
Macomb, Illinois. 4,939 undergraduate students. 124 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
What the data flags at Western Illinois University
Short-arc shifts (recent 3-year window), peer outliers, earnings trend breaks, completion drops, enrollment cliffs, and debt-to-earnings warnings — surfaced deterministically from the federal record. Multi-decade shifts are reported separately in the Long Arc section, since 25-year tuition drift isn't really an anomaly.
-15%
First-year retention
First-year retention at Western Illinois University fell 15% between 2021 and 2024 (71.9% → 61.4%).
+12%
In-state tuition
In-state tuition at Western Illinois University rose 12% between 2021 and 2024 ($13.7k → $15.3k).
+12%
Out-of-state tuition
Out-of-state tuition at Western Illinois University rose 12% between 2021 and 2024 ($13.7k → $15.3k).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
The numbers, vs. Illinois
Each tile compares this institution to the Illinois median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
$54,163+26% · 6→10y
Illinois median $40,810$43,057
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry44.8%-0% · '97→'24
Illinois median 53.3%$19,762+353% · '97→'20
At program completion4,939-54% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS58.7%-20% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time75.0%+238% · '01→'24
latest cohort$14,952+285% · '00→'24
out-of-state $14,952SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How earnings spread, 4 to 10 years after entry
Treasury tax-record earnings for federally aided students who first enrolled at this institution. Each point is a horizon from the most-recent vintage. Single median per horizon (no p25/p75 publishing).
Earnings widen with time post-entry. Selection: federal-aid recipients only — not all graduates.Methodology →
SECTION 03 · DEBT-TO-EARNINGS
What loans cost relative to earnings
Annual debt service as a share of median earnings 10 years after entry, computed under federal Direct loan terms (10-year fixed at 6%). The 8% line is the gainful-employment threshold from federal regulation; above 12% has historically been considered “failing” under prior rule cycles.
Institution-wide
4.9%Median federal debt $19,762 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $54,163 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Ten-plus year arc
Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.
Undergraduate enrollment.
150%-time completion rate.
Median federal student debt at exit.
+45%
Western Illinois University · completion · 100% rose
21.0% → 30.5%
-20%
Western Illinois University · retention fell
77.0% → 61.4%
-54%
Western Illinois University · undergrad enrollment fell
9,644 → 4,410
+285%
Western Illinois University · in-state tuition rose
$3,962 → $15,264
+125%
Western Illinois University · out-of-state tuition rose
$6,775 → $15,264
+353%
Western Illinois University · median debt rose
$5,578 → $25,251
-100%
Western Illinois University · cohort default rate fell
10.7% → 0.0%
+30%
Western Illinois University · earnings_median_10yr rose
$41,800 → $54,163
+25%
Western Illinois University · earnings_median_8yr rose
$38,900 → $48,456
+23%
Western Illinois University · earnings_median_6yr rose
$35,100 → $43,057
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Ranked by 5-year earnings
Each row is one (CIP × credential) program reported by the institution in College Scorecard's Field-of-Study data. Cohort floor is 30 students; below this, federal data is suppressed.
Computer and Information Sciences, General.$95,531Business Administration, Management and Operations.$91,506Accounting and Related Services.$89,822Construction Management.$84,868Educational Administration and Supervision.$82,067Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing.$80,342Engineering Technology, General.$76,965Computer and Information Sciences, General.$73,734Chemistry.$71,894Criminal Justice and Corrections.$71,813Biology, General.$67,238Marketing.$66,612Criminal Justice and Corrections.$65,120Accounting and Related Services.$65,058Educational/Instructional Media Design.$62,091Business Administration, Management and Operations.$61,543Political Science and Government.$60,990Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$60,809Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$59,792Finance and Financial Management Services.$59,698Health and Physical Education/Fitness.$59,683Agriculture, General.$58,204Communication Disorders Sciences and Services.$58,006Student Counseling and Personnel Services.$52,646
Showing top 24 of 49 ranked programs.
SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY
49 programs with earnings, grouped
Programs are grouped by 2-digit CIP family. Programs without reported earnings are hidden to keep the list focused.
COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES · CIP 10
COMPUTER & INFORMATION SCIENCES · CIP 11
EDUCATION · CIP 13
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$44,479Educational Administration and Supervision.$82,067Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$59,792Student Counseling and Personnel Services.$52,646Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$60,809Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$51,486Educational/Instructional Media Design.$62,091Special Education and Teaching.$48,274
ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGIES · CIP 15
FOREIGN LANGUAGES · CIP 16
FAMILY & CONSUMER SCIENCES · CIP 19
ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERATURE · CIP 23
LIBERAL ARTS & GENERAL STUDIES · CIP 24
BIOLOGICAL & BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES · CIP 26
PARKS, RECREATION & FITNESS · CIP 31
PHYSICAL SCIENCES · CIP 40
PSYCHOLOGY · CIP 42
HOMELAND SECURITY & PROTECTIVE SERVICES · CIP 43
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION & SOCIAL SERVICES · CIP 44
SOCIAL SCIENCES · CIP 45
VISUAL & PERFORMING ARTS · CIP 50
HEALTH PROFESSIONS · CIP 51
BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT & MARKETING · CIP 52
Business Administration, Management and Operations.$61,543Accounting and Related Services.$65,058Business Administration, Management and Operations.$91,506Finance and Financial Management Services.$59,698Marketing.$66,612Accounting and Related Services.$89,822Human Resources Management and Services.$48,657Construction Management.$84,868
HISTORY · CIP 54
AGRICULTURE · CIP 01
COMMUNICATION & JOURNALISM · CIP 09
FINANCIAL OUTCOME · ILLUSTRATION
Estimate the financial outcome at Western Illinois University
Pick a program. Cost from Scorecard net price by family income; earnings from Treasury 5-year-post-completion median, projected forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve. The selection-bias toggle applies the Dale-Krueger shrinkage. Outcomes illustration, not a forecast — see methodology.
Shrinks the earnings premium toward the matched-applicant mean. STEM <15%, business ~40%, arts & education ~60%.
NET PRESENT VALUE
$467,636
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 8
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
- Cost per year
- $11,608
- HS-only baseline · IL
- $38,300
- Years to complete
- 4
- CIP family
- 43
Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Same sector and degree mix in Illinois
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
CAUSAL DISCIPLINE
“Western Illinois University graduates earn $X” — not “Western Illinois University makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Western Illinois University caused. Selection effects (who admits, who enrolls, who completes) are real. We publish federal data with strict descriptive phrasing — and link the methodology where you can read about the limitations directly.