Dupage Policy Journal

Benedictine University topped the list for student volleyball participation in Illinois, according to a Watchdog analysis of college sports participation.

The U.S. Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education collects athletics data annually from all institutions with intercollegiate athletics programs that receive funding through federal financial aid programs. Data for 2016 – the latest year available – includes more than 2,000 schools nationwide.

The Benedictine University volleyball team consisted of 77 members.

In all, there are 1,591 students playing on 83 college and university volleyball teams in the state.

College volleyball participation rankings

Rank	School	Division	Total Undergraduates	Volleyball Total Participation
1	Benedictine University	NCAA Division III with football	2,687	77
2	Robert Morris University Illinois	NAIA Division II	2,253	62
3	North Central College	NCAA Division III with football	2,534	54
4	McKendree University	NCAA Division II with football	1,820	46
5	Quincy University	NCAA Division II with football	1,035	45
6	Dominican University	NCAA Division III without football	2,101	44
7	Lewis University	NCAA Division II without football	3,741	38
8	Loyola University Chicago	NCAA Division I without football	10,261	36
9	Trinity Christian College	NAIA Division II	903	34
10	Millikin University	NCAA Division III with football	1,796	33
11	Greenville College	NCAA Division III with football	913	32
12	Saint Xavier University	NAIA Division II	2,599	31
13	Augustana College	NCAA Division III with football	2,514	30
14	Olivet Nazarene University	NAIA Division II	3,019	30
15	Aurora University	NCAA Division III with football	3,302	24
16	Illinois Wesleyan University	NCAA Division III with football	1,760	24
17	Illinois College	NCAA Division III with football	949	22
18	Illinois Institute of Technology	NCAA Division III without football	2,709	22
19	Elmhurst College	NCAA Division III with football	2,682	21
20	Eureka College	NCAA Division III with football	644	21
21	MacMurray College	NCAA Division III with football	531	21
22	North Park University	NCAA Division III with football	1,884	20
23	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	NCAA Division I-FBS	32,126	20
24	Northwestern University	NCAA Division I-FBS	8,249	19
25	Western Illinois University	NCAA Division I-FCS	7,482	19
26	Bradley University	NCAA Division I without football	4,278	18
27	Parkland College	NJCAA Division II	2,978	18
28	Roosevelt University	NAIA Division II	2,250	18
29	University of Illinois at Springfield	NCAA Division II without football	1,896	18
30	Carl Sandburg College	NJCAA Division II	929	17
31	Monmouth College	NCAA Division III with football	1,124	17
32	Southern Illinois University-Carbondale	NCAA Division I-FCS	10,509	17
33	University of Illinois at Chicago	NCAA Division I without football	16,408	17
34	DePaul University	NCAA Division I without football	13,126	16
35	Judson University	NAIA Division I	786	16
36	Lincoln Land Community College	NJCAA Division II	2,269	16
37	Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville	NCAA Division I without football	9,883	16
38	University of St Francis	NAIA Division II	1,320	16
39	Chicago State University	NCAA Division I without football	1,464	15
40	Concordia University-Chicago	NCAA Division III with football	1,355	15
41	Eastern Illinois University	NCAA Division I-FCS	5,117	15
42	Lake Forest College	NCAA Division III with football	1,502	15
43	Northern Illinois University	NCAA Division I-FBS	12,323	15
44	Wheaton College	NCAA Division III with football	2,400	15
45	William Rainey Harper College	NJCAA Division III	4,331	15
46	Blackburn College	NCAA Division III without football	569	14
47	Frontier Community College	NJCAA Division I	257	14
48	Illinois Central College	NJCAA Division II	3,082	14
49	Illinois State University	NCAA Division I-FCS	17,420	14
50	Kankakee Community College	NJCAA Division II	1,064	14
51	Lincoln College	NJCAA Division III	727	14
52	Lincoln Trail College	NJCAA Division I	386	14
53	South Suburban College	NJCAA Division II	1,328	14
54	Kaskaskia College	NJCAA Division I	1,233	13
55	Lake Land College	NJCAA Division I	2,261	13
56	Lincoln Christian University	NAIA Division II	357	13
57	Moraine Valley Community College	NJCAA Division II	6,186	13
58	Rock Valley College	NJCAA Division III	2,999	13
59	Trinity International University-Illinois	NAIA Division I	631	13
60	Waubonsee Community College	NJCAA Division II	3,101	13
61	Black Hawk College	NJCAA Division II	1,909	12
62	John A Logan College	NJCAA Division I	1,899	12
63	Morton College	NJCAA Division II	1,253	12
64	Rend Lake College	NJCAA Division I	1,135	12
65	Sauk Valley Community College	NJCAA Division I	792	12
66	Triton College	Other	3,107	12
67	University of Chicago	NCAA Division III with football	5,956	12
68	Governors State University	NAIA Division II	1,923	11
69	Highland Community College	NJCAA Division I	823	11
70	Knox College	NCAA Division III with football	1,325	11
71	Oakton Community College	NJCAA Division II	2,596	11
72	Illinois Valley Community College	NJCAA Division II	1,256	10
73	Lewis and Clark Community College	NJCAA Division I	1,731	10
74	McHenry County College	NJCAA Division II	1,944	10
75	Moody Bible Institute	NCCAA Division II	2,275	10
76	Southwestern Illinois College	NJCAA Division I	3,860	10
77	City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College	NJCAA Division I	2,420	9
78	College of Lake County	NJCAA Division II	3,808	9
79	Joliet Junior College	NJCAA Division III	4,988	9
80	Rockford University	NCAA Division III with football	909	9
81	College of DuPage	NJCAA Division III	6,335	8
82	Elgin Community College	NJCAA Division III	3,008	8
83	Prairie State College	NJCAA Division II	1,400	8

Source: U.S. Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education