Career Training Path › Surgical technologist programs › Illinois
Surgical technologist programs in Illinois
Illinois has 20 accredited campuses awarding surgical tech credentials. If you finish and work as a surgical technologist in Illinois, expect to start around $48,560–$60,160 and reach a median of $64,650 with experience; the top quarter earn $77,670 or more (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025, Illinois). Graduates of these Illinois programs — every graduate, whatever job they took — earned a median of $47,019 in their first year, against $41,966 nationally; that is the figure used to rank campuses below.
What surgical technologists earn in Illinois
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; 3,570 employed in Illinois. National median: $64,650.
Campuses in Illinois, ranked by what their graduates earned
Cities: CartervilleChampaignChicagoChicago HeightsDecaturEast PeoriaElginGlen EllynGrayslakeMolinePalatineQuincyRiver GroveRockfordSpringfieldUllin
| Campus | City | Type | Grads / yr | Earnings, yr 1 | Program debt | Completion | Cost / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| College of Lake County | Grayslake | Public community college | 9 | $64,729 | not reported | 37% | not reported |
| William Rainey Harper College | Palatine | Public community college | 16 | $58,892 | $14,459 | 48% | not reported |
| Triton College | River Grove | Public community college | 7 | $53,274 | $10,500 | 29% | not reported |
| Elgin Community College | Elgin | Public community college | 43 | $52,333 | not reported | 41% | not reported |
| City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College | Chicago | Public community college | 28 | $49,736 | $9,572 | 18% | not reported |
| Rasmussen University-Illinois | Rockford | for-profit career school | 25 | $47,657 | $20,283 | 43% | not reported |
| Illinois Central College | East Peoria | Public community college | 14 | $46,381 | not reported | 49% | not reported |
| Richland Community College | Decatur | Public community college | 8 | $46,174 | not reported | 60% | not reported |
| Lincoln Land Community College | Springfield | Public community college | 5 | $44,662 | $17,247 | 48% | not reported |
| Parkland College | Champaign | Public community college | 8 | $42,320 | $9,407 | 32% | not reported |
| Midwestern Career College | Chicago | for-profit career college | 18 | $39,544 | $20,000 | 54% | $24,216 |
| Stautzenberger College-Rockford Career College | Rockford | for-profit career college | 9 | $35,263 | $26,416 | 66% | not reported |
| College of DuPage | Glen Ellyn | Public community college | 36 | not reported | $7,000 | 25% | not reported |
| John Wood Community College | Quincy | Public community college | 11 | not reported | not reported | 49% | not reported |
| Prairie State College | Chicago Heights | Public community college | 7 | not reported | not reported | 21% | not reported |
| Black Hawk College | Moline | Public community college | 6 | not reported | not reported | 40% | not reported |
| Shawnee Community College | Ullin | Public community college | 6 | not reported | not reported | 60% | not reported |
| Stellar Career College | Chicago | for-profit career college | 6 | not reported | not reported | not reported | $29,499 |
| John A Logan College | Carterville | Public community college | 3 | not reported | not reported | 46% | not reported |
| Rock Valley College | Rockford | Public community college | 1 | not reported | not reported | 37% | not reported |
Earnings are median wages and self-employment income reported to the IRS (W-2 and Schedule SE) for graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled, measured in the calendar year after finishing. They are pay only: health insurance, retirement contributions and other benefits are not included.
Ranked by median earnings of this program's graduates one year after completion (College Scorecard field-of-study, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2022-23 Completions survey; College Scorecard June 2026; Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (DAPIP), September 2026); campuses without a reported figure follow, by credentials awarded. "Program debt" is the median federal loan debt for graduates of this program at this campus. Completion is the campus-wide 150%-of-time rate. "Not reported" means the federal file suppresses the value for privacy.