Northern Illinois University (NIU) vs SUNY Albany

Northern Illinois University (NIU) and SUNY at Albany (SUNYA) are two public universities with distinct characteristics. NIU, located in DeKalb, Illinois, has an acceptance rate of 84%, while SUNYA, situated in Albany, New York, has a slightly lower acceptance rate of 79%. Both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors at NIU including Business, Psychology, and Education, and popular majors at SUNYA including Business, Psychology, and Criminal Justice. NIU's student body is predominantly White (62%) and female (56%), while SUNYA's student body is more diverse, with a larger proportion of Black (14%) and Hispanic (17%) students and a more balanced gender ratio (49% male, 51% female). In terms of graduation rates, SUNYA has a slightly higher four-year graduation rate (49%) compared to NIU's (45%). To
Northern Illinois University logo

Northern Illinois University

SUNY at Albany logo

SUNY at Albany

Overview

Location Dekalb, Illinois Albany, New York
Campus setting Suburb: Small City: Small
College type 4 year 4 year
Control/business model Public Public
Calendar system Semester Semester
Degrees offered Undergraduate and Graduate Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate 67.0% 82.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission

Acceptance rate 70.4% 68.0%
Application fees
Undergraduate: $40

Graduate: $60
Undergraduate: $50

Graduate: $75
SAT range N/A 1090 - 1280
ACT range N/A 22 - 29
Students submitting SAT score 15.0%
Students submitting ACT score 2.0%
Total number of applicants 22,602 21,265
Total number of admissions given out 15,922 14,458
Admitted students who chose to enroll 2,285 3,030
Yield rate 14.4% 21.0%
Test scores (SAT/ACT) N/A N/A
High school GPA Required Required
Recommendation letters Not required Required
High school transcript Required Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL) Required Required

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price $27,218
In state: $26,578

Out of state: $44,418
Average net price $13,265 $17,350
Tuition $9,606
In state: $7,070

Out of state: $24,910
Room & board $11,098
Room/dormitory: $9,558

Meal plan: $5,495
Available payment plans
  • Prepaid tuition plan
  • Guaranteed tuition plan
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

98.0%
Average amount $13,008
84.0%
Average amount $10,460
Students receiving federal student loan 58.0%
Average amount $5,313
54.0%
Average amount $5,299
Students taking out private loans 5.0%
Average amount $11,726
8.0%
Average amount $13,629

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 11,834
Men 47.1% Women 52.9%
12,654
Men 46.4% Women 53.6%
Graduate students 4,400
Men 40.8% Women 59.2%
4,421
Men 35.0% Women 65.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Moderate
Moderate
Out-of-state students N/A 4.4%
International students 4.6% 6.6%
Campus local/setting Suburb: Small City: Small
Dormitory capacity 4,500 6,867
First year students are required to live on campus? No No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from N/A New York New Jersey Pennsylvania Connecticut Maryland

Academics

Popular study areas
  • Education
  • Health Professions
  • Business
  • Engineering
  • Computer and Information Science
  • Education
  • Business
  • Public Administration and Social Service
  • Health Professions
  • Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio 15:1 18:1
Institutional accreditation Higher Learning Commission Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome

Graduation rate 50.8% 66.3%
Dropout rate 46.9% 8.5%
Transferred out N/A 24.4%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $118,716
  • Year 2: $98,186
  • Year 3: $125,726
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $95,047
  • Year 2: $88,920
  • Year 3: $96,563
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $91,161
  • Year 2: $91,587
  • Year 3: $94,214
Management Information Systems and Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $66,013
  • Year 2: $70,009
  • Year 3: $76,350
Computer Science (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $74,606
  • Year 2: $75,204
  • Year 3: $75,980
Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $64,752
  • Year 2: $64,150
  • Year 3: $74,168
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $70,234
  • Year 2: $66,989
  • Year 3: $74,151
Psychology, General (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $57,535
  • Year 2: $68,499
  • Year 3: $73,940
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $70,453
  • Year 2: $69,151
  • Year 3: $72,792
Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $63,291
  • Year 2: $63,685
  • Year 3: $72,760
Taxation (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $70,203
  • Year 2: $74,307
  • Year 3: $95,473
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $63,947
  • Year 2: $74,576
  • Year 3: $92,782
Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $62,191
  • Year 2: $60,256
  • Year 3: $75,996
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $43,841
  • Year 2: $49,962
  • Year 3: $69,785
Public Administration (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $54,012
  • Year 2: $55,964
  • Year 3: $63,462
Public Health (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $54,175
  • Year 2: $49,270
  • Year 3: $61,387
Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $46,902
  • Year 2: $40,510
  • Year 3: $58,543
Curriculum and Instruction (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $55,701
  • Year 2: $52,733
  • Year 3: $55,488
Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $43,798
  • Year 3: $52,904
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $42,404
  • Year 2: $38,289
  • Year 3: $52,601

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