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Northern Illinois University, Illinois

Northern Illinois University

Northern Illinois University was founded in 1895 and is a public university situated in DeKalb, Illinois. The university has an enrollment of over 25,000 students and is considered to be the 2nd largest university in Illinois. It is a member of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. Satellite centers of NIU are located in:

  • Hoffman Estates
  • Naperville
  • Oregon
  • Rockford

The sports teams are nicknamed the Huskies, and the official colors are black and cardinal. The teams compete in the Mid-American Conference. The university has men’s and women’s basketball, golf and soccer teams. Nicole Jeray, LPGA professional golfer; Emil R. Schiesser, aeronautics engineer at NASA; Joan Allen, Academy award-nominated actress, and Larry Young, MLB umpire are notable graduates of this university.

Overview of Northern Illinois University

DeKalb, Illinois is home to Northern Illinois. DeKalb is a small suburb. The school is a public institution. Degrees at Northern Illinois go up to the Doctoral degree.

Areas of Study

Students commonly pursue studies in music and media.

Northern Illinois Selectivity

Prospective students are advised that admissions are not open to all; the school selects from among qualified applicants. Three quarters of students in 2005 had SAT verbal scores of at least 470. Half of math SAT scores of accepted students fell between 480 and 595.

Faculty

Northern Illinois has a tenure system for senior faculty.

Student Body

The school has 25,208 enrolled students (as of 2005).

Student Life

Northern Illinois values student athletics, and belongs to the Mid-American Conference.

More complete details are provided below.

Contacting Northern Illinois

Northern Illinois University
Dekalb, IL 60115-2828
General Phone: (800) 892-3050
Admissions Phone: (815) 753-0446
Financial Aid Phone: (815) 753-1395
http://www.niu.edu

Northern Illinois Programs and Degrees (2005)

Northern Illinois awarded degrees in these major categories in 2005:

General CategoryDegreesMost Common Majors [see all]
Education And Teaching1,227elementary school teaching, special ed, educational administration, curriculum and instruction, reading teaching, school counseling, physical education teaching, adult ed administration, ...
Business And Management1,089accounting, business management, management science, marketing, finance, operations management, MIS, taxation
Liberal Arts790English, sociology, political science, history, liberal arts and sciences, economics, Spanish language, anthropology, ...
Therapy And Counseling385psychology, communication disorders, community health services, physical therapy, educational psychology
Media333communication studies, journalism
Engineering214electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, engineering management
Science188biology, chemistry, atmospheric sciences, physics, geology
Computer Science And Engineering176computer science
Nursing And Emergency Medicine133registered nursing, nursing science
Fine Arts128fine arts, art history and criticism
Family And Social Work123family studies, public administration
Law102law
Music101music, music performance
Nutrition And Exercise Therapy85health and physical education, dietitian, sports and fitness management
Mathematics71mathematics, statistics
Engineering Technician61engineering technology, industrial tech
Medicine53medical preparatory, public health
Art Studies38art studies
Construction Trades37apparel and textiles
Drama And Performing Arts33drama
Medical Support And Technology22clinical lab tech
Religion And Philosophy20philosophy

Number of programs and degrees for Northern Illinois in 2005:

Degree LevelTotal
Awarded
Number of
Programs
Bachelor's degree3,62655
Master's degree1,56753
First-professional degree1021
Doctor's degree8016
Post-master's certificate342

Northern Illinois Student Body

In 2005, Northern Illinois had a total enrollment of 25,208 students (21,328 full-time equivalent).

Students in the Freshman Class (2005):

GroupPercent
Men48%
Women52%
Full-Time100%
Part-Time0%

More details are available, using 2004 data:

Students By Class (2004):

GroupPercent
Undergraduate67%
Graduate31%
First Professional1%

Racial Diversity (2004):
RacePercent
White72%
Black10%
Hispanic6%
Asian7%
American Indian0%
Other Races4%
(Foreign Students)1%

Students by Age (2004):

AgePercent
Under 180%
18-1922%
20-2125%
22-2422%
25-2912%
30-346%
35-394%
40-496%
50-643%
65+0%

Incoming (Freshman) Students by Place of Residence (2004):
(From available data sampling)

ResidencePercent
Illinois97%
Wisconsin1%

Northern Illinois Graduation, Retention, and Transfers

Retention Rates (2004):

GroupReturning From
Previous Year
Full-Time78 %
Part-Time46 %

Northern Illinois Room and Board (2005)

Northern Illinois offers campus housing for 6,315 of its 21,328 (full-time) students.

(Please refer to our profile of DeKalb, Illinois for details about the area surrounding the campus. Also see our list of other Illinois Colleges).

The school does not offer students a meal plan.

Northern Illinois Admissions and Selectivity (2005)

Acceptances:

GroupApplicantsAcceptedPercent
Accepted
EnrolledPercent of
Accepted Enrolled
Total14,0609,90870%3,17932%
Men6,4084,52571%1,53734%
Women7,6525,38370%1,64230%

Standardized Test Scores:

Test25th Percentile75th Percetile
SAT Verbal470570
SAT Math480595
ACT Verbal1924
ACT Math1825
ACT Composite2024

Application Requirements:

ItemRequirement
GPArequired
Class Rankrequired
High School Recordrequired
College Prep Programrequired
Recommendationsnot required
Formal Demonstration of Competencenot required
Standardized Tests (SAT and/or ACT)required
Percent of Applicants Submitting SAT4%
Percent of Applicants Submitting ACT99%
TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)required

Admissions Phone Number: (815) 753-0446

Northern Illinois Expenses and Financial Aid (2005)

Expenses and Financial Aid:

ExpenseAmount
In-state tuition and fees$ 7,228
Out-of-state tuition and fees$ 12,290
Room and board$ 5,950
Room charge$ 3,784
Board (meal plan) charge$ 3,200
Books and supplies$ 1,000
Other expenses$ 2,364

Financial Aid:
Northern Illinois participates in Federal Title IV financial aid programs. (The school's OPE ID is 173700)

Financial Aid Phone Number: (815) 753-1395

Northern Illinois Faculty

Northern Illinois has a tenure system for faculty.

Tenure Status of Faculty (2004):

Full-Time Faculty LevelMenWomen
Tenured341165
Non-tenured, but on tenure track93112
Non-tenured and not on tenure track92111

Salaries for full-time faculty:

Full-Time Faculty (2004):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professorcalendar year24$115,0048$107,175
Associate professorcalendar year9$81,75510$73,630
Assistant professorcalendar year3$56,5670*
All faculty totalcalendar year36$101,82218$88,539

*: salaries are not displayed where there are fewer than 3 professors in the category.

Full-Time Faculty (2004):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professoracademic year138$80,17740$71,505
Associate professoracademic year176$62,614110$60,777
Assistant professoracademic year96$51,831113$52,415
Instructoracademic year52$33,84895$33,581
All faculty totalacademic year462$62,382358$52,120

*: salaries are not displayed where there are fewer than 3 professors in the category.

Full-Time Faculty (2004):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professorshort term1*0*
All faculty totalshort term1*0*

*: salaries are not displayed where there are fewer than 3 professors in the category.

Northern Illinois Athletics

Athletic Conferences (2005):

SportConference
FootballMid-American Conference
BasketballMid-American Conference
BaseballMid-American Conference
TrackMid-American Conference

Students on Athletic Scholarships (2004):

SportMenWomenTotal
Total203131334
Football93093
Basketball141630
Baseball29029
Track02222
All Other Sports6793160

Northern Illinois Degree Programs (2005)

ART STUDIES
Art/Art Studies, General

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT
Accounting
Business Administration and Management, General
Finance, General
Management Information Systems, General
Management Science, General
Marketing/Marketing Management, General
Operations Management and Supervision
Taxation

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
Computer Science

CONSTRUCTION TRADES
Apparel and Textiles, General

DRAMA AND PERFORMING ARTS
Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, General

EDUCATION AND TEACHING
Adult and Continuing Education Administration
Art Teacher Education
Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services
Curriculum and Instruction
Early Childhood Education and Teaching
Educational Administration and Supervision, Other
Educational Leadership and Administration, General
Educational/Instructional Media Design
Elementary Education and Teaching
Health Teacher Education
Physical Education Teaching and Coaching
Reading Teacher Education
Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education
Special Education and Teaching, General

ENGINEERING
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering
Engineering/Industrial Management
Industrial Engineering
Mechanical Engineering

ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN
Engineering Technology, General
Industrial Technology/Technician

FAMILY AND SOCIAL WORK
Human Development and Family Studies, General
Public Administration

FINE ARTS
Art History, Criticism and Conservation
Fine/Studio Arts, General

LAW
Law (LLB, JD)

LIBERAL ARTS
Anthropology
Economics, General
English Language and Literature, General
French Language and Literature
Geography
German Language and Literature
History, General
Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies
Political Science and Government, General
Russian Language and Literature
Sociology
Spanish Language and Literature

MATHEMATICS
Mathematics, General
Statistics, General

MEDIA
Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric
Journalism

MEDICAL SUPPORT AND TECHNOLOGY
Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist

MEDICINE
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs, Other
Public Health, General (MPH, DPH)

MUSIC
Music Performance, General
Music, General

NURSING AND EMERGENCY MEDICINE
Nursing Science (MS, PhD)
Nursing/Registered Nurse (RN, ASN, BSN, MSN)

NUTRITION AND EXERCISE THERAPY
Dietetics/Dietitian (RD)
Health and Physical Education, General
Sport and Fitness Administration/Management

RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY
Philosophy

SCIENCE
Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, General
Biology/Biological Sciences, General
Chemistry, General
Geology/Earth Science, General
Physics, General

THERAPY AND COUNSELING
Communication Disorders, General
Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling
Educational Psychology
Physical Therapy/Therapist
Psychology, General

Northern Illinois Highlights

(Details are provided further down on this page.)

What Sets Northern Illinois Apart:

CategoryTrophy 
Number of students
(vs. all colleges)
Top 2%Northern Illinois Number of students
Number of degree programs
(vs. all colleges)
Top 3%Northern Illinois Number of degree programs
% of degrees in fine arts
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 8%Northern Illinois % of degrees in fine arts
% of degrees in education and teaching
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 10%Northern Illinois % of degrees in education and teaching
Degrees concentrated in limited number of degree programs
(vs. all colleges)
Top 12%Northern Illinois Degrees concentrated in limited number of degree programs
% of degrees in music
(vs. colleges with similar degree levels)
Top 18%Northern Illinois % of degrees in music
% of degrees in media
(vs. all colleges)
Top 20%Northern Illinois % of degrees in media
Explanation of the Highlights categories

Notable:
Grants credits for AP courses
Offers distance learning
Career counseling
Career placement services
Student employment services
On-campus day care
Option to study abroad
Offers campus housing
Offers part-time study
On-campus library
Offers campus housing
Tenure system for quality teaching
Has ROTC (army)
Offers athletic scholarships
NCAA athletic conference member

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