---
title: Northern Illinois University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Dekalb, IL
control: Public
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, IL · Public · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $57,808 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $37,890 – $83,290 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $16,250 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $9,500 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 49% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $28,851 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 77% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.28× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $29,808 | derived |

**49% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $16,250 (≈ 28% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $21,211 to $118,716 across 69 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Doctoral Degree | $118,716 | not reported |
| Taxation. | Master's Degree | $102,369 | not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Master's Degree | $95,047 | $44,065 |
| Curriculum and Instruction. | Doctoral Degree | $93,683 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $91,161 | $32,950 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Master's Degree | $90,240 | not reported |
| Computer Science. | Master's Degree | $74,606 | not reported |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Doctoral Degree | $70,453 | $61,500 |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $70,234 | $22,500 |
| Management Information Systems and Services. | Master's Degree | $66,013 | not reported |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $64,752 | $23,125 |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Master's Degree | $63,291 | $20,500 |
| Educational/Instructional Media Design. | Master's Degree | $61,996 | $23,063 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $61,111 | $25,000 |
| Public Administration. | Master's Degree | $59,600 | $30,500 |
| Computer Science. | Bachelor's Degree | $58,306 | $21,004 |
| Industrial Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $58,020 | $23,750 |
| Psychology, General. | Doctoral Degree | $57,535 | not reported |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Master's Degree | $54,632 | $44,534 |
| Engineering Technologies/Technicians, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $54,379 | $27,250 |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. | Bachelor's Degree | $54,062 | $18,000 |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $53,726 | $15,342 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Master's Degree | $53,640 | $28,097 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $53,625 | $15,250 |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Master's Degree | $51,547 | $26,549 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Master's Degree | $50,679 | $24,901 |
| Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services. | Master's Degree | $50,653 | not reported |
| Law. | First Professional Degree | $49,788 | $75,688 |
| Public Health. | Master's Degree | $49,533 | not reported |
| Education, General. | Master's Degree | $48,308 | $30,041 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $48,290 | $21,000 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,481 | $20,000 |
| Mathematics. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,025 | $23,068 |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $44,627 | $21,500 |
| Hospitality Administration/Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,692 | $24,000 |
| Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,822 | $24,976 |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,969 | $21,029 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Master's Degree | $40,641 | not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,364 | $22,500 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $39,764 | $50,098 |
| Geography and Cartography. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,698 | not reported |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Master's Degree | $39,676 | not reported |
| Apparel and Textiles. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,025 | not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,000 | $24,545 |
| Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,776 | $27,787 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $35,021 | $22,500 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,748 | $25,000 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,427 | $23,812 |
| Music. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,406 | $27,250 |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,211 | $27,000 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,454 | $22,333 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,157 | $22,250 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,549 | $20,923 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,525 | $25,294 |
| Chemistry. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,230 | $22,750 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,084 | $25,500 |
| English Language and Literature, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,604 | $22,500 |
| Journalism. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,216 | $22,625 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,956 | $30,020 |
| Human Services, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $28,882 | $27,000 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $28,265 | $21,375 |
| Health/Medical Preparatory Programs. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,550 | $22,500 |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Master's Degree | $26,036 | not reported |
| Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,025 | $22,500 |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,004 | $22,500 |
| Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,950 | not reported |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,927 | $16,500 |
| Music. | Master's Degree | $22,805 | not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $21,211 | $27,000 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Northern Illinois University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?147703

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/northern-illinois-university-il.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`