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Best Digital Forensics Schools Near South Elgin, IL (2026)
Updated September 7, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
South Elgin, Illinois has 2 accredited schools offering digital forensics programs, with tuition ranging from $5,184 to $17,359 per year for indexed programs. South Elgin has a population of about 24,921. In the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, the top-earning digital forensics-related role is Information Security Analysts at a median $125,310 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Digital Forensics Schools to South Elgin
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer digital forensics programs near South Elgin, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from South Elgin city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from South Elgin.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
South Elgin is part of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area (BLS area code 16980). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Illinois statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Information Security Analysts
$125,310
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$120,956
Computer Occupations, All Other
$101,660
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$98,127
Detectives and Criminal Investigators
$102,260
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$98,707
Forensic Science Technicians
$112,790
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$108,871
Computer Systems Analysts
$103,490
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$99,894
Computer Network Support Specialists
$73,340
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$70,792
Private Detectives and Investigators
$68,310
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$65,936
Network and Computer Systems Administrators
$103,170
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
$99,585
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
South Elgin at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
103.6 (above U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other South Elgin-Area Cities With Digital Forensics Programs
How many accredited digital forensics schools are near South Elgin, IL?
Our directory has 2 accredited schools offering digital forensics programs near South Elgin. The closest is Milwaukee Area Technical College in Milwaukee, WI (75.5 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (78.2 miles). 2 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying digital forensics roles near South Elgin?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying digital forensics-related roles near South Elgin are: Information Security Analysts ($125,310), Forensic Science Technicians ($112,790), Computer Systems Analysts ($103,490). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Illinois statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Elgin instead of South Elgin?
Elgin, IL is 3.4 miles from South Elgin and has its own set of local digital forensics programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 7, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
