Alton, Illinois has 5 accredited schools offering higher education administration programs. Alton has a population of about 25,430. Median household income is $53,005 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 21.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the St. Louis, MO-IL metro area, the top-earning higher education administration-related role is Education Administrators, Postsecondary at a median $104,940 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Higher Education Administration Schools to Alton
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer higher education administration programs near Alton, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Alton 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 Alton.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
59%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$56,346
Avg net price
$14,889/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 74%
- Programs offered: 70
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
57%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$53,390
Avg net price
$13,297/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 68%
- Programs offered: 121
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
64%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$57,808
Avg net price
$13,391/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 70%
- Programs offered: 92
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
69%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$60,123
Avg net price
$21,044/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 79%
- Programs offered: 70
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
59%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$63,446
Avg net price
$22,313/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 68%
- Programs offered: 55
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
56%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$54,089
Avg net price
$18,436/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 61%
- Programs offered: 70
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
70%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$68,740
Avg net price
$10,974/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 79%
- Programs offered: 140
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
50%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$48,712
Avg net price
$20,194/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 62%
- Programs offered: 80
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Illinois schools on the Illinois higher education administration page.
Higher Education Administration Wages Near Alton
Alton is part of the St. Louis, MO-IL metro area (BLS area code 41180). 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) |
| Education Administrators, Postsecondary |
$104,940 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$110,347 |
| Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors |
$60,160 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$63,260 |
| Instructional Coordinators |
$76,340 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$80,273 |
| Training and Development Specialists |
$60,290 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$63,396 |
| Education Administrators, All Other |
$80,930 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$85,100 |
| Education Teachers, Postsecondary |
$64,600 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$67,928 |
| Social and Community Service Managers |
$73,980 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$77,792 |
| Human Resources Specialists |
$71,670 |
St. Louis, MO-IL |
$75,363 |
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.
Alton at a Glance
| Metric |
Value |
Source |
| Population |
25,430 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income |
$53,005 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ |
21.2% |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) |
95.1 (below U.S. average) |
BEA RPP 2024 |
Other Alton-Area Cities With Higher Education Administration Programs
- Edwardsville, IL – 11.7 mi away (25,071 pop)
- Florissant, MO – 11.8 mi away (51,776 pop)
- Granite City, IL – 12.1 mi away (28,908 pop)
- Ferguson, MO – 13.1 mi away (20,846 pop)
- Hazelwood, MO – 14.9 mi away (25,443 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited higher education administration schools are near Alton, IL?
Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering higher education administration programs near Alton. The closest is Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in Edwardsville, IL (11.2 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Lindenwood University (20.5 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying higher education administration roles near Alton?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying higher education administration-related roles near Alton are: Education Administrators, Postsecondary ($104,940), Education Administrators, All Other ($80,930), Instructional Coordinators ($76,340). 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 Edwardsville instead of Alton?
Edwardsville, IL is 11.7 miles from Alton and has its own set of local higher education administration programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Alton an affordable place to study higher education administration?
Alton’s median household income of $53,005 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Alton while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Illinois public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
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.
Learn More About Higher Education Administration Programs
Other Programs Available in Alton
Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Alton:
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- Medical Billing and Coding programs in Alton, IL
- Medical Assistant programs in Alton, IL
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- Health Science programs in Alton, IL
- Occupational Safety and Health programs in Alton, IL
- Entrepreneurship programs in Alton, IL
- Interior Design programs in Alton, IL
- Photography programs in Alton, IL
- Sustainability Management programs in Alton, IL
- Behavioral Health Science programs in Alton, IL
- Mental Health Counseling programs in Alton, IL
- Substance Abuse Counseling programs in Alton, IL
- Journalism programs in Alton, IL
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- Communication Disorders programs in Alton, IL
- Speech Pathology programs in Alton, IL
- Technical Communication programs in Alton, IL
- Professional Writing programs in Alton, IL
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- Business Development programs in Alton, IL
- Construction Management programs in Alton, IL
- Economics programs in Alton, IL
- Financial Technology programs in Alton, IL
- Forensic Accounting programs in Alton, IL
- Health Information Management programs in Alton, IL
- Hospitality Management programs in Alton, IL
- International Business programs in Alton, IL
- Organizational Leadership programs in Alton, IL
- Management Information Systems programs in Alton, IL
- Nonprofit Management programs in Alton, IL
- Operations Management programs in Alton, IL
- Public Administration programs in Alton, IL
- Real Estate programs in Alton, IL
- Recreation Management programs in Alton, IL
- Retail Management programs in Alton, IL
- Risk Management programs in Alton, IL
- Statistics programs in Alton, IL
- Taxation programs in Alton, IL
- Corrections programs in Alton, IL
- Crime Analysis programs in Alton, IL
- Criminal Justice Administration programs in Alton, IL
- Criminology programs in Alton, IL
- Cybercrime programs in Alton, IL
- Emergency Management programs in Alton, IL
- Fire Science programs in Alton, IL
- Forensic Science programs in Alton, IL
- Legal Services programs in Alton, IL
- Legal Studies programs in Alton, IL
- Paralegal programs in Alton, IL
- Security Management programs in Alton, IL
- Cloud Computing programs in Alton, IL
- Computer Engineering programs in Alton, IL
- Innovation programs in Alton, IL
- Mobile App Development programs in Alton, IL
- Software Development programs in Alton, IL
- User Experience programs in Alton, IL
- Web Development programs in Alton, IL
- Artificial Intelligence programs in Alton, IL
- Machine Learning programs in Alton, IL
- Supply Chain Management programs in Alton, IL
- Data Analytics programs in Alton, IL
- Public Health programs in Alton, IL
- Human Resources programs in Alton, IL
- Project Management programs in Alton, IL
- Special Education programs in Alton, IL
- Homeland Security programs in Alton, IL
- Marketing programs in Alton, IL
- Finance programs in Alton, IL
- Kinesiology programs in Alton, IL
- Sports Management programs in Alton, IL
- Early Childhood Education programs in Alton, IL
- Elementary Education programs in Alton, IL
- Biology programs in Alton, IL
- Communications programs in Alton, IL
- Graphic Design programs in Alton, IL
- Human Services programs in Alton, IL
- MBA programs in Alton, IL
- Criminal Justice programs in Alton, IL
- Nursing programs in Alton, IL
- Business Administration programs in Alton, IL
- Computer Science programs in Alton, IL
- Psychology programs in Alton, IL
- Education programs in Alton, IL
- Engineering programs in Alton, IL
- Technology programs in Alton, IL
- Liberal Arts programs in Alton, IL
- Healthcare programs in Alton, IL
- Cybersecurity programs in Alton, IL
- Accounting programs in Alton, IL
- Healthcare Administration programs in Alton, IL
- Social Work programs in Alton, IL
- Counseling programs in Alton, IL
Data verified: September 5, 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.
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