Northern Illinois University

Location and Contact Information

The campus is in a small suburb.

Overview

Northern Illinois University was established on May 22, 1895 by John P. Altgeld, the then governor of Illinois. The university was founded as a satellite campus for Illinois State University, which was then known as the Northern Illinois State Normal School. The college adopted its current name on July 1, 1955. NIU is organized into various colleges, including as:

• College of Business
• College of Education
• College of Engineering and Engineering Technology
• College of Engineering and Engineering Technology
• College of Law
• College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
• College of Visual and Performing Arts

NIU offers more than 200 student organizations including a large number of Fraternities and Sororities.

Highlights (vs. Other Schools)

• Many students concentrating in therapy and counseling, music, mathematics, fine arts, education and teaching, and media.
• Large number of students.
• Large number of programs of study offered.
• Number of dorm rooms for students.
• High faculty salary.

School characteristics:

• The school is public.
• Academic calender: Semester.
• Carnegie classification: Doctoral/Research Universities, Extensive.

Features of note:

• The school offers a faculty tenure system.
• There are one or more libraries on-campus.
• Campus housing is available.
• Students may study abroad.
• Distance learning is available.
• Part-time classes are available.
• ROTC.
• Athlete financial aid is awarded.

Similar Schools

Based on proprietary BrainTrack computer comparisons against all other US colleges, these schools appear to be most similar to Northern Illinois:

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Degrees Awarded (in 2009-2010)

Faculty

Tenure (2009-2010):

Students

Student enrollment was 24,397 in 2009-2010 (20,473 full-time equivalent).

About 47% of the freshmen class in 2009-2010 was male and women were 53% of the class.

Undergrads are 71% of enrolled students, graduate students are 28%, and those seeking first-professional graduate degrees represent 1%.

Students under 25 years old represent 71% of the student body. About 7% of the school is at least 40 years of age.

Among freshmen students, 99% are full-time and 1% are part-time.

Admissions Summary (2009-2010)

SAT Test Scores:

Room and Board

Northern Illinois provides on-campus housing for 6,300 of its 20,473 (full-time) students (as of 2009-2010). The school requires freshmen to live on campus.

Athletics

School sports include football, basketball, baseball, and track. The school is in the Mid-American Conference for major sports.

The school offers financial aid for athletes. Of students receiving athletic financial aid, 198 male students received the aid (men were 61% of those receiving aid) and 125 women were awarded financial aid based on athletics (representing 39% of students receiving such aid) .

Graduate School Focus

Northern Illinois offers graduate (post-Bachelor) studies. The highest degree offered is the Doctorate (Research/Scholarship & Professional Practice).

The school's Graduate School Carnegie Classification is Comprehensive Doctoral (No Medical/Veterinary).

Programs of Study

(Number of degrees in 2009-2010 in parentheses)

ART STUDIES (42 awarded)

• Art/Art Studies

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT (1,105 awarded)

• Accounting
• Business Administration and Management
• Finance
• Management Information Systems
• Management Science
• Marketing/Marketing Management
• Operations Management and Supervision
• Taxation

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (165 awarded)

• Computer Science

CONSTRUCTION TRADES (41 awarded)

• Apparel and Textiles

DRAMA AND PERFORMING ARTS (28 awarded)

• Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts

EDUCATION AND TEACHING (954 awarded)

• 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
• Educational Evaluation and Research
• Educational Leadership and Administration
• 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

ENGINEERING (206 awarded)

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

ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN (72 awarded)

• Engineering Technology

FAMILY AND SOCIAL WORK (155 awarded)

• Human Development and Family Studies
• Public Administration

FINE ARTS (95 awarded)

• Art History, Criticism and Conservation
• Fine Arts and Art Studies
• Fine/Studio Arts

LAW (92 awarded)

• Law (LLB, JD)

LIBERAL ARTS (959 awarded)

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

MATHEMATICS (91 awarded)

• Mathematics
• Statistics

MEDIA (380 awarded)

• Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric
• Journalism

MEDICAL SUPPORT AND TECHNOLOGY (31 awarded)

• Audiology/Audiologist and Hearing Sciences
• Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist

MEDICINE (54 awarded)

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

MUSIC (82 awarded)

• Music Performance
• Music

NURSING AND EMERGENCY MEDICINE (252 awarded)

• Nursing Science (MS, PhD)
• Nursing/Registered Nurse (RN, ASN, BSN, MSN)

NUTRITION AND EXERCISE THERAPY (195 awarded)

• Dietetics/Dietitian (RD)
• Health and Physical Education
• Sport and Fitness Administration/Management

RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY (29 awarded)

• Philosophy

SCIENCE (237 awarded)

• Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology
• Biology/Biological Sciences
• Chemistry
• Geology/Earth Science
• Physics

THERAPY AND COUNSELING (507 awarded)

• Communication Disorders
• Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling
• Educational Psychology
• Physical Therapy/Therapist
• Psychology