Located 65 miles west of Chicago in DeKalb, Northern Illinois University enrolls just over 15,000 students, including about 11,000 undergraduates. Chartered in 1895, the university began as a teacher’s school in 1899 with an inaugural class of 146 women and 27 men. Now, the public university boasts seven degree-granting colleges offering nearly 70 undergraduate majors and 80 graduate programs.
About half of undergrads are the first in their family to go to college, NIU says. The university prides itself on providing personalized attention to help them navigate life on campus. The student faculty ratio is 14:1, and programs such as the Research Rookies help connect students with faculty members. In that particular program, students who are new to research learn foundational skills in once-a-month meetings with their program peers and work on an individual project under the guidance of a faculty mentor.
In Money’s analysis, NIU scores well for its relative affordability. Our team estimates the cost of a degree (not counting state and federal aid) is about $107,000 for in-state students, placing the university in the top quarter of more than 700 on our list. Outside the classroom, Huskies have access to an NCAA Division 1 athletics program and more than 200 student organizations.
