Best Legal Services Schools Near Jacksonville, IL (2026)

Jacksonville, Illinois has 5 accredited schools offering legal services programs, with tuition ranging from $4,340 to $9,592 per year for indexed programs. Jacksonville has a population of about 17,490. Median household income is $62,615 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 23.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Illinois, the top-earning legal services-related role is Lawyer at a median $160,800 annually (BLS, May 2025).


The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer legal services programs near Jacksonville, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Jacksonville 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:

  • 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 Jacksonville. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

University of Illinois Springfield

Springfield, IL 32.7 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
65.0 BOC Score
Graduation rate 57%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $57,103
Avg net price $9,833/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 78%
  • Programs offered: 48

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Illinois State University

Normal, IL 84.9 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
71.9 BOC Score
Acceptance rate 88%
Graduation rate 65%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $62,117
Avg net price $19,398/yr
Tuition
In‑state$16,144
Out‑of‑state$28,210
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 81%
  • Programs offered: 112

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#3

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale

Carbondale, IL 149.6 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
55.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 57%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $53,390
Avg net price $13,297/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 68%
  • Programs offered: 121

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

Lewis University

Romeoville, IL 171.9 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
73.8 BOC Score
Acceptance rate 71%
Graduation rate 65%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $66,099
Avg net price $17,028/yr
Tuition
In‑state$39,200
Out‑of‑state$39,200
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 81%
  • Programs offered: 85

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#5

Dominican University

River Forest, IL 196.0 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
68.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 59%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $60,327
Avg net price $11,745/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 79%
  • Programs offered: 63

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

Roosevelt University

Chicago, IL 201.5 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
40.1 BOC Score
Graduation rate 50%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $48,712
Avg net price $20,194/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 62%
  • Programs offered: 80

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#7

Loyola University Chicago

Chicago, IL 206.7 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
66.2 BOC Score
Graduation rate 71%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $71,530
Avg net price $36,079/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 83%
  • Programs offered: 168

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL 208.5 miles from Jacksonville
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
81.8 BOC Score
Graduation rate 97%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $89,363
Avg net price $29,167/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 98%
  • Programs offered: 167

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Illinois schools on the Illinois legal services page.


OccupationMedian Annual Wage (Illinois, statewide)
Paralegal and Legal Assistant$63,670
Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant$52,790
Lawyer$160,800

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.


Jacksonville at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population17,490Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$62,615Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+23.6%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)


Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering legal services programs near Jacksonville. The closest is University of Illinois Springfield in Springfield, IL (32.7 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Fontbonne University (75.2 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

Based on BLS May 2025 state wage data, the top-paying legal services-related roles in Illinois are: Lawyer ($160,800), Paralegal and Legal Assistant ($63,670), Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant ($52,790). Wages for Jacksonville workers will track these statewide medians, adjusted for local cost of living.

Should I look at programs in Springfield instead of Jacksonville?

Springfield, IL is 30.9 miles from Jacksonville and has its own set of local legal services programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Jacksonville’s median household income of $62,615 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Jacksonville 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.


Other Programs Available in Jacksonville

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Jacksonville:

Data verified: August 31, 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.