State profile · IL · Clery Act

Safest Colleges in Illinois

Federal Clery Act filings for all 216 tracked Illinois campuses, ranked by 2024 on-campus Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents per 1,000 students. Among nonzero reporters, College of DuPage currently has the lowest rate.

216
Institutions tracked
1.87
Avg campus rate / 1k (216 of 216 scored)
2.16
Statewide rate / 1k
#27
Rank by avg campus rate
735,384
Students enrolled

Among nonzero Clery reporters, College of DuPage has the lowest rate in Illinois

According to U.S. Department of Education Clery Act filings, across 216 tracked campuses in Illinois, 136 reported zero 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents used in the rate; among campuses with any in those categories, College of DuPage has the lowest rate at 0.08 per 1,000 students. This comparison excludes other Clery tables and unreported harm, so review the details before drawing a safety conclusion.

Data source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey

campuses tracked
216
average campus, per 1,000 (216 of 216 scored)
1.87
lowest nonzero rate - College of DuPage
0.08
campuses at zero in score categories
136

Data updated August 2026

Clery Act plate

Sheet IL · Illinois 1.87/1k campus avg · #27/59

RATE-LOW · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-LARGE-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-FLAT

  • RATE-LOW 1.87/1k
  • RANK-MID #27/59
  • PHOTO-FINISH South Carolina · ±0.06
  • ZERO-HEAVY 63% zero
  • WT-LARGE-HOT Δ −0.29
  • BOOK-FULL 216/216
  • CONC-FLAT top5 25%

Nearest campus-rate peer: South Carolina (-0.06/1k)

Illinois sheet RATE-LOW · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-LARGE-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-FLAT · peer South Carolina. Codes from this state’s OPE Campus Safety filing: unweighted campus rate, corpus rank (low = safer), photo-finish peer state, zero-report share, campus-vs-weighted gap, scored book, top-five enrollment concentration. Not a moving recommendation.

Clery plate RATE-LOW · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-LARGE-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-FLAT. Nearest unweighted-rate peer is South Carolina (-0.06/1k). Among nonzero reporters inside the state, College of DuPage leads at 0.08/1k. Instrument codes from this state's OPE Campus Safety sheet; compare similarly sized campuses before treating any single rate as decisive.

Most scored campuses in Illinois (136 of 216) reported zero in the 2024 score categories and stay unranked against each other. Among the nonzero reporters, College of DuPage leads at 0.08/1k, then Oakton College (0.12/1k); Waubonsee Community College (0.12/1k). A high zero share is a filing pattern, not a proof that campuses are safer.

Campus-rate neighbourhood around Illinois

Lowest/highest poles plus states nearest Illinois on unweighted average campus Clery rate. Full ladder: /rankings/.

per 1,000 students

What this shows Neighbourhood of scored states around Illinois's 1.87/1k unweighted campus average, not a full 50-state board reprint.

Source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey (Clery Act) As of 2024

Safest colleges in Illinois, ranked by reported rate

Ranked from the lowest 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA rate upward, counting only the 80 Illinois campuses with at least one incident in those score categories. Showing the top 50 here so the page stays crawlable; positions are numbered within the full nonzero group.

2
Oakton CollegeDes Plaines · 8,329 students
Enrollment
8,329
Incidents /1k
0.12
6
Morton CollegeCicero · 3,562 students
Enrollment
3,562
Incidents /1k
0.28
#CampusEnrollmentIncidents /1k
1College of DuPageGlen Ellyn · 26,224 students26,2240.084% of the leader · rank #1
2Oakton CollegeDes Plaines · 8,329 students8,3290.124% of the leader · rank #2
3Waubonsee Community CollegeSugar Grove · 8,305 students8,3050.124% of the leader · rank #3
4Lewis and Clark Community CollegeGodfrey · 4,606 students4,6060.224% of the leader · rank #4
5Governors State UniversityUniversity Park · 4,397 students4,3970.234% of the leader · rank #5
6Morton CollegeCicero · 3,562 students3,5620.284% of the leader · rank #6
7William Rainey Harper CollegePalatine · 13,988 students13,9880.294% of the leader · rank #7
8School of the Art Institute of ChicagoChicago · 3,394 students3,3940.294% of the leader · rank #8
9John A Logan CollegeCarterville · 3,224 students3,2240.314% of the leader · rank #9
10Rock Valley CollegeRockford · 5,978 students5,9780.334% of the leader · rank #10
11City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X CollegeChicago · 9,303 students9,3030.434% of the leader · rank #11
12Danville Area Community CollegeDanville · 2,297 students2,2970.444% of the leader · rank #12
13Chicago State UniversityChicago · 2,238 students2,2380.454% of the leader · rank #13
14Lincoln Land Community CollegeSpringfield · 5,677 students5,6770.534% of the leader · rank #14
15College of Lake CountyGrayslake · 12,530 students12,5300.564% of the leader · rank #15
16City Colleges of Chicago-Harry S Truman CollegeChicago · 6,839 students6,8390.584% of the leader · rank #16
17Heartland Community CollegeNormal · 4,855 students4,8550.624% of the leader · rank #17
18City Colleges of Chicago-Wilbur Wright CollegeChicago · 7,798 students7,7980.644% of the leader · rank #18
19University of St FrancisJoliet · 3,074 students3,0740.654% of the leader · rank #19
20Aurora UniversityAurora · 5,923 students5,9230.684% of the leader · rank #20
21Roosevelt UniversityChicago · 4,281 students4,2810.704% of the leader · rank #21
22Black Hawk CollegeMoline · 4,001 students4,0010.754% of the leader · rank #22
23North Park UniversityChicago · 2,557 students2,5570.784% of the leader · rank #23
24City Colleges of Chicago-Richard J Daley CollegeChicago · 6,296 students6,2960.794% of the leader · rank #24
25Lewis UniversityRomeoville · 7,011 students7,0110.864% of the leader · rank #25
26Southern Illinois University EdwardsvilleEdwardsville · 11,893 students11,8931.014% of the leader · rank #26
27Judson UniversityElgin · 960 students9601.044% of the leader · rank #27
28Illinois Eastern Community CollegesOlney · 3,726 students3,7261.074% of the leader · rank #28
29Moraine Valley Community CollegePalos Hills · 11,296 students11,2961.154% of the leader · rank #29
30St. Augustine CollegeChicago · 810 students8101.234% of the leader · rank #30
31Illinois Institute of TechnologyChicago · 8,834 students8,8341.254% of the leader · rank #31
32McKendree UniversityLebanon · 2,392 students2,3921.254% of the leader · rank #32
33Parkland CollegeChampaign · 6,014 students6,0141.334% of the leader · rank #33
34Benedictine UniversityLisle · 2,917 students2,9171.374% of the leader · rank #34
35City Colleges of Chicago-Harold Washington CollegeChicago · 6,121 students6,1211.474% of the leader · rank #35
36Illinois Central CollegeEast Peoria · 7,906 students7,9061.524% of the leader · rank #36
37City Colleges of Chicago-Kennedy-King CollegeChicago · 3,274 students3,2741.534% of the leader · rank #37
38Southwestern Illinois CollegeBelleville · 8,492 students8,4921.534% of the leader · rank #38
39Northeastern Illinois UniversityChicago · 5,734 students5,7341.574% of the leader · rank #39
40Concordia University-ChicagoRiver Forest · 4,770 students4,7701.684% of the leader · rank #40
41Saint Xavier UniversityChicago · 3,485 students3,4851.724% of the leader · rank #41
42University of Illinois SpringfieldSpringfield · 4,628 students4,6281.944% of the leader · rank #42
43DePaul UniversityChicago · 21,210 students21,2102.074% of the leader · rank #43
44City Colleges of Chicago-Olive-Harvey CollegeChicago · 3,137 students3,1372.234% of the leader · rank #44
45Loyola University ChicagoChicago · 17,384 students17,3842.364% of the leader · rank #45
46Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and ScienceNorth Chicago · 2,021 students2,0212.474% of the leader · rank #46
47Greenville UniversityGreenville · 1,104 students1,1042.724% of the leader · rank #47
48North Central CollegeNaperville · 3,003 students3,0033.004% of the leader · rank #48
49Moody Bible InstituteChicago · 2,202 students2,2023.184% of the leader · rank #49
50Illinois State UniversityNormal · 21,546 students21,5463.204% of the leader · rank #50

30 additional nonzero-reporting campuses rank below this top-50 list in the same rate order.

Look up any campus via the Campus Safety Incident Tool or browse all schools.

Unranked campuses (136): zero score or no normalized rate

136 filed zero 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents in the score categories; other Clery tables can still contain reports. Neither group supports a safety ordering, so these campuses are listed alphabetically without positions. Showing 15 alphabetically; the remaining 121 stay out of this HTML table so large states stay crawlable.

#CampusEnrollmentIncidents /1k
Adler UniversityChicago · 1,631 students1,6310.00
Ambria College of NursingHoffman Estates · 123 students1230.00
Americare Technical SchoolPark Ridge · 25 students250.00
Aviation Institute of Maintenance-ChicagoChicago · 333 students3330.00
Blackburn CollegeCarlinville · 513 students5130.00
Blessing Rieman College of Nursing and Health SciencesQuincy · 193 students1930.00
CAAN Academy of NursingMatteson · 96 students960.00
CALC Institute of TechnologyAlton · 83 students830.00
Cameo Beauty AcademyOak Lawn · 82 students820.00
Cannella School of Hair Design-ChicagoChicago · 64 students640.00
Cannella School of Hair Design-Villa ParkVilla Park · 51 students510.00
Capital Area Career CenterSpringfield · 353 students3530.00
Capri Beauty CollegeOak Forest · 33 students330.00
Career Center of Southern IllinoisRed Bud · 36 students360.00
Carl Sandburg CollegeGalesburg · 1,603 students1,6030.00

Open any remaining campus from the school directory or the incident tool.

The largest universities in Illinois by enrollment

Enrollment leaders: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (59,238); University of Illinois Chicago (33,906); Chamberlain University-Illinois (32,944), then 213 more. The 15 biggest Illinois institutions by total enrolled students, from the same federal IPEDS collection, each shown with its 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA rate. The five largest alone account for 25% of the 735,384 students enrolled across all 216 tracked Illinois institutions. Mid-pack by size sits near Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing (605 students, 0.00/1k).

#InstitutionEnrollmentIncidents /1k
1University of Illinois Urbana-ChampaignChampaign · 59,238 students59,238100% of the leader · rank #14.19
2University of Illinois ChicagoChicago · 33,906 students33,90657% of the leader · rank #26.87
3Chamberlain University-IllinoisAddison · 32,944 students32,94456% of the leader · rank #30.00
4DeVry University-IllinoisLisle · 31,296 students31,29653% of the leader · rank #40.00
5College of DuPageGlen Ellyn · 26,224 students26,22444% of the leader · rank #50.08
6Northwestern UniversityEvanston · 23,856 students23,85640% of the leader · rank #66.50
7Illinois State UniversityNormal · 21,546 students21,54636% of the leader · rank #73.20
8DePaul UniversityChicago · 21,210 students21,21036% of the leader · rank #82.07
9University of ChicagoChicago · 18,566 students18,56631% of the leader · rank #93.72
10Loyola University ChicagoChicago · 17,384 students17,38429% of the leader · rank #102.36
11Northern Illinois UniversityDekalb · 15,414 students15,41426% of the leader · rank #119.60
12Joliet Junior CollegeJoliet · 14,414 students14,41424% of the leader · rank #120.00
13William Rainey Harper CollegePalatine · 13,988 students13,98824% of the leader · rank #130.29
14College of Lake CountyGrayslake · 12,530 students12,53021% of the leader · rank #140.56
15Southern Illinois University EdwardsvilleEdwardsville · 11,893 students11,89320% of the leader · rank #151.01

Enrollment is total reported students, not full-time equivalent, and a branch campus is reported separately from its parent institution. A larger campus is not a less safe one: the incident rate beside it is already per 1,000 students.

Nationwide states with similar campus scale or Clery rate

Two nationwide peer sets for Illinois: closest on tracked campus count (216 here) and closest on unweighted average 2024 Clery rate (1.87/1k here). The rate-neighbourhood and keep-peer blocks above stay geo-adjacent; these columns are cross-state ABS comparisons with deduped link sets.

Similar campus count

Nearest other states by number of tracked postsecondary institutions (≥5 scored campuses in corpus).

Similar campus Clery rate

Nearest other states by unweighted average on-campus Clery rate. Campus-count peers above are excluded.

Read with this state

Keep-peer handoff: South Carolina sits nearest on unweighted campus average (-0.06/1k). Inside Illinois, open College of DuPage's campus sheet next.

College of DuPage profile → | All states → | Illinois net price → | Incident tool → | Methodology →

Illinois campus safety FAQ

What are the safest colleges in Illinois?

Among Illinois campuses that reported at least one 2024 Criminal Offense or VAWA incident in the Clery categories used here, College of DuPage has the lowest rate (0.08 per 1,000 students). Next among nonzero reporters: Oakton College (0.12/1k); Waubonsee Community College (0.12/1k). 136 campuses reported zero in those score categories and are listed separately without a safety ordinal, because a zero report is not the same as a proven safer campus.

How does PlainCampus rank campus safety in Illinois?

In Illinois, campuses with any 2024 Criminal Offenses or VAWA incidents in the score categories are ordered by incidents per 1,000 students - College of DuPage currently leads that nonzero list at 0.08/1k. Zero-report and unscored campuses stay unranked and alphabetical. See /methodology for the full rate definition.

How many colleges in Illinois are compared?

This page covers 216 tracked higher-education institutions in Illinois, serving about 735,384 enrolled students combined across 108 cities. 80 carry a ranked nonzero rate; 136 are listed without a safety ordinal. By enrollment the largest are University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (59,238); University of Illinois Chicago (33,906); Chamberlain University-Illinois (32,944). Nearby state averages for context: South Carolina (1.82/1k); New York (1.95/1k); Mississippi (2.00/1k); Wisconsin (1.75/1k); Alabama (1.70/1k); U.S. Virgin Islands (1.67/1k).

Every figure on PlainCampus is rendered directly from federal Clery Act source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal Clery Act source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

PlainCampus is for informational purposes only and does not constitute safety, security, legal, or enrollment advice; the data describes reported on-campus activity, it is not a complete picture of safety at any campus and cannot predict any individual student's experience. See our appropriate use guidance.