Portage, Indiana has 5 accredited schools offering instructional design programs. Portage has a population of about 37,951. Median household income is $72,833 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 16.0% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, the top-earning instructional design-related role is Training and Development Managers at a median $133,800 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Instructional Design Schools to Portage
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer instructional design programs near Portage, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Portage 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 Portage.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
28%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$36,596
Avg net price
$7,770/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 43%
- Programs offered: 90
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
65%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$51,833
Avg net price
$14,940/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 77%
- Programs offered: 175
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning Commission · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
46%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$48,387
Avg net price
$10,873/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 67%
- Programs offered: 102
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
81%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$63,742
Avg net price
$16,264/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 91%
- Programs offered: 192
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Indiana schools on the Indiana instructional design page.
Instructional Design Wages Near Portage
Portage 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 Indiana statewide.
| Occupation |
Median Wage |
Source |
COL-Adjusted (US=100) |
| Instructional Coordinators |
$77,900 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$75,193 |
| Training and Development Specialists |
$67,050 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$64,720 |
| Training and Development Managers |
$133,800 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$129,151 |
| Education Teachers, Postsecondary |
$61,350 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$59,218 |
| Educational Instruction and Library Workers, All Other |
$46,390 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$44,778 |
| Education Administrators, Postsecondary |
$101,070 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$97,558 |
| Farm and Home Management Educators |
$65,740 |
IN statewide |
$63,456 |
| Graphic Designers |
$66,490 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN |
$64,180 |
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.
Portage at a Glance
| Metric |
Value |
Source |
| Population |
37,951 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income |
$72,833 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ |
16.0% |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) |
103.6 (above U.S. average) |
BEA RPP 2024 |
Other Portage-Area Cities With Instructional Design Programs
- Hobart, IN – 7.0 mi away (28,248 pop)
- Gary, IN – 8.7 mi away (76,424 pop)
- Valparaiso, IN – 10.0 mi away (35,065 pop)
- Merrillville, IN – 10.7 mi away (34,994 pop)
- Highland, IN – 14.7 mi away (22,737 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited instructional design schools are near Portage, IN?
Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering instructional design programs near Portage. The closest is Governors State University in University Park, IL (29.4 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Aurora University (61.5 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying instructional design roles near Portage?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying instructional design-related roles near Portage are: Training and Development Managers ($133,800), Education Administrators, Postsecondary ($101,070), Instructional Coordinators ($77,900). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Indiana statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Hobart instead of Portage?
Hobart, IN is 7.0 miles from Portage and has its own set of local instructional design programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Portage an affordable place to study instructional design?
Portage’s median household income of $72,833 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Portage while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Indiana 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 Instructional Design Programs
Other Programs Available in Portage
Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Portage:
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- Mobile App Development programs in Portage, IN
- Software Development programs in Portage, IN
- User Experience programs in Portage, IN
- Web Development programs in Portage, IN
- Artificial Intelligence programs in Portage, IN
- Machine Learning programs in Portage, IN
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- Engineering programs in Portage, IN
- Technology programs in Portage, IN
- Liberal Arts programs in Portage, IN
- Healthcare programs in Portage, IN
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- Accounting programs in Portage, IN
- Healthcare Administration programs in Portage, IN
- Social Work programs in Portage, IN
- Counseling programs in Portage, IN
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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