Home / Worth-It Scores / Illinois / Lake Forest
Is Lake Forest College worth it?
A first pass affordability and outcome read for Lake Forest, using national average inputs. Run your own numbers for a personalized score.
Worth-It Score
Stretch
Lake Forest sits in the stretch band for a typical family. The long-run earnings picture at $61,825 helps, but median debt of $26,158 plus yearly net price of $28,673 creates a tighter path. For context, Lake Forest's net price runs about 31% above the typical 4-year, private nonprofit school. It can work, but the financing plan has to be deliberate.
Is the price fair?
Compared to 1237 similar 4-year, private nonprofit schools
This school
$29,894
/yrAverage school like this
$22,837
/yrThis weighs on your Worth-It Score
You'd pay about $7,057 more per year than the typical student at a similar school. Over 4 years that's roughly $28,000 in extra cost.
Score breakdown
The public version of the score weighs affordability, after graduation outcomes, and repayment burden.
Affordability
40% weight
The yearly net price is manageable, but it makes the aid offer matter a lot.
Outcome
40% weight
The outcome data does not create enough margin to fully offset the cost.
Repayment
20% weight
Median debt stays in a more comfortable repayment range for a typical graduate.
The numbers behind the score
Median net price per year
$28,673
Median earnings 10 years out
$61,825
Median debt at graduation
$26,158
Graduation rate
74%
At Lake Forest, a typical graduate carries about $26,158 in student debt and earns roughly $61,825 ten years after enrolling. On a standard 10-year repayment plan, that works out to about $297 per month, or 6% of pre-tax income. That sits inside a borrower comfort range for many graduates.
What this means for your family
Lake Forest is a private nonprofit four year school in Lake Forest, IL. Private pricing can swing more dramatically based on aid, so your personalized score matters more here than the national average view alone.
Similar schools worth comparing
These schools share a similar sector, geography, or price range.
Private nonprofit 4-year
Illinois Wesleyan
Bloomington, IL
Worth-It Score: 71/100
Median net price: $28,199
Private nonprofit 4-year
Northwestern
Evanston, IL
Worth-It Score: 87/100
Median net price: $29,167
Private nonprofit 4-year
Wheaton
Wheaton, IL
Worth-It Score: 71/100
Median net price: $26,975
Private nonprofit 4-year
Hebrew Theological
Skokie, IL
Worth-It Score: 29/100
Median net price: $26,861
Private nonprofit 4-year
DePaul
Chicago, IL
Worth-It Score: 62/100
Median net price: $30,902
Common questions about Lake Forest
The median net price at Lake Forest is $28,673 per year. That is the average yearly price after typical grant aid for students in the public federal data, not the published sticker price.
Get your personalized Worth-It score
National averages are a starting point. Plug in your actual aid offer, intended major, and family situation to get a score that reflects your specific picture.
Looking at private colleges options in Illinois? See the most affordable private colleges in Illinois →
The Worth-It Score weighs affordability (40%), after graduation outcomes (40%), and repayment burden (20%). Underlying data points come from publicly available federal higher education reporting. See full methodology →