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Northern Illinois University

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, IL 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 mathematics.

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 2007 had SAT verbal scores of at least 470. Half of math SAT scores of accepted students fell between 510 and 620.

Faculty

Northern Illinois has a tenure system for senior faculty. The full-time faculty at the school is well-paid, which often goes with faculty quality.

Student Body

Northern Illinois has 25,254 enrolled students (as of 2007).

Student Life

The school values student athletics, and belongs to the Mid-American Conference.

More complete details are provided below.

Contacting Northern Illinois

Northern Illinois University
1425 W. Lincoln Hwy.
Dekalb, IL 60115-2825
General Phone: (800) 892-3050
http://www.niu.edu

Northern Illinois Programs and Degrees (2007)

General CategoryDegreesMost Common Majors [see all]
Business And Management1,109accounting, business management, marketing, finance, management science, operations management, taxation, MIS
Education And Teaching1,061elementary school teaching, educational administration, special ed, curriculum and instruction, early childhood education, physical education teaching, reading teaching, adult ed administration, ...
Liberal Arts894sociology, English, history, political science, economics, liberal arts and sciences, geography, Spanish language, ...
Therapy And Counseling448psychology, communication disorders, community health services, physical therapy, educational psychology
Media334communication studies, journalism
Engineering240mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, industrial engineering, engineering management
Science219biology, geology, atmospheric sciences, chemistry, physics
Nursing And Emergency Medicine168registered nursing, nursing science
Family And Social Work143family studies, public administration
Nutrition And Exercise Therapy131dietitian, health and physical education, sports and fitness management
Computer Science And Engineering128computer science
Fine Arts115fine arts, art history and criticism
Law87law
Mathematics85mathematics, statistics
Engineering Technician79engineering technology
Music73music, music performance
Medicine69public health, medical preparatory
Construction Trades47apparel and textiles
Drama And Performing Arts44drama
Religion And Philosophy33philosophy
Medical Support And Technology31clinical lab tech
Art Studies28art studies

Number of programs and degrees for Northern Illinois in 2007:

Degree LevelTotal
Awarded
Number of
Programs
Bachelor's degree3,75654
Master's degree1,55354
Doctor's degree10716
First-professional degree871
Post-master's certificate632

Northern Illinois Student Body

In 2007, Northern Illinois had a total enrollment of 25,254 students (21,547 full-time equivalent).

Students in the Freshman Class:

GroupPercent
Men47%
Women53%
Full-Time99%
Part-Time1%

Students By Class:

GroupPercent
Undergraduate70%
Graduate29%
First Professional1%

Racial Diversity:
RacePercent
White71%
Black10%
Hispanic7%
Asian7%
American Indian0%
Unknown4%
(Foreign Students)1%

Students by Age:

AgePercent
Under 180%
18-1922%
20-2126%
22-2423%
25-2912%
30-345%
35-394%
40-495%
50-643%
65+0%

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

ResidencePercent
Illinois97%

Northern Illinois Graduation, Retention, and Transfers

Retention Rates (2007):

GroupReturning From
Previous Year
Full-Time78 %
Part-Time32 %

Northern Illinois Room and Board (2007)

Northern Illinois offers campus housing for 6,300 of its 21,547 (full-time) students. Freshmen are required to live on campus.

(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 (2007)

Acceptances:

GroupApplicantsAcceptedPercent
Accepted
EnrolledPercent of
Accepted Enrolled
Total14,77810,27370%3,01329%
Men6,5774,58970%1,42231%
Women8,2015,68469%1,59128%

Standardized Test Scores:

Test25th Percentile75th Percetile
SAT Verbal470600
SAT Math510620
SAT Writing470580
ACT Verbal1925
ACT Math1825
ACT Composite2025

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 SAT2%
Percent of Applicants Submitting ACT99%
TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)required
Other Standardized Testsnot required

Northern Illinois Expenses and Financial Aid (2007)

Expenses and Financial Aid:

ExpenseAmount
In-state tuition and fees$ 8,588
Out-of-state tuition and fees$ 14,738
Room and board$ 7,568
Room charge$ 4,880
Board (meal plan) charge$ 3,200
Books and supplies$ 1,200
Other expenses$ 2,132

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

Northern Illinois Faculty

Northern Illinois has a tenure system for faculty.

Tenure Status of Faculty (2007):

Full-Time Faculty LevelMenWomen
Tenured331195
Non-tenured, but on tenure track106113
Non-tenured and not on tenure track6697

Salaries for full-time faculty:

Full-Time Faculty (2007):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professorcalendar year22$134,0785$121,120
Associate professorcalendar year7$96,8866$110,217
Assistant professorcalendar year3$45,9000*
All faculty totalcalendar year32$117,67511$115,173

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

Full-Time Faculty (2007):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professoracademic year134$90,08452$81,927
Associate professoracademic year174$68,828131$66,199
Assistant professoracademic year103$61,777112$59,821
Instructoracademic year60$40,94099$38,797
All faculty totalacademic year471$69,781394$59,577

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

Northern Illinois Athletics

Athletic Conferences:

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

Students on Athletic Scholarships (2007):

SportMenWomenTotal
Total198125323
Football86086
Baseball33033
Basketball141630
Track02727
All Other Sports6582147

Northern Illinois Degree Programs (2007)

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 Evaluation and Research
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

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 11%Northern Illinois % of degrees in fine arts
Degrees concentrated in limited number of degree programs
(vs. all colleges)
Top 11%Northern Illinois Degrees concentrated in limited number of degree programs
% of degrees in therapy and counseling
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 13%Northern Illinois % of degrees in therapy and counseling
% of degrees in music
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 14%Northern Illinois % of degrees in music
% of degrees in media
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 14%Northern Illinois % of degrees in media
% of degrees in education and teaching
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 15%Northern Illinois % of degrees in education and teaching
Salaries of full-time faculty
(vs. all colleges)
Top 18%Northern Illinois Salaries of full-time faculty
% of degrees in mathematics
(vs. colleges with similar degree levels)
Top 20%Northern Illinois % of degrees in mathematics
Explanation of the Highlights categories

Notable:
Grants credits for AP courses
Offers distance learning
Career counseling
Career services
Student employment services
On-campus day care
Option to study abroad
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

Online Degree Alternatives

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