College · Public · Dekalb, IL · Suburb
Northern Illinois University
Dekalb, IL
Hispanic-serving
Admit rate70%
6-yr median pay$46k
Net price / yr$13k
Undergrad size11,301
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $13k/yr for a shot at a $46k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 70% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid.
If you get in
11,301 undergrads. Medium. Clubs matter for finding your people.
Where you live
Suburban — a short drive to the nearest city, greener but still connected.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $29k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $13k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$115k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$54k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$62k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.2x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $13.2k
- Room & board
- $14.2k
- Books & supplies
- $1,200
How students pay for it.
Pell grants47%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans47%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$22k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $10k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention70%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr49%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$46k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$58k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out0%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity
Setting, size, and who this school is.
- Setting
- Suburb
- Control
- Public
- Undergrad size
- 11,301
- Location
- Dekalb, IL
- Region
- Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI)
- Carnegie class
- Doctoral Universities: High Research Activity (R2)
- Size & setting
- Four-year · large · primarily residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, selective, higher transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White42%
- Hispanic26%
- Black21%
- Asian6%
- International2%
- Two or more races2%
- Unknown1%
- American Indian / Alaska Native1%
First-gen students38%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time11%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Veterans0%
Share using veteran education benefits.
Median family income$39k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 57
What you can study.