How this school serves students from different economic backgrounds, including Pell students, first-generation pathways, and long-term mobility outcomes.
Northern Illinois University admits 69.8% of applicants, making it a broadly accessible institution for students across Illinois and the region. Among enrolled undergraduates, 47.3% receive Pell Grants and 38.3% are first-generation college students — figures that reflect NIU's long-standing role as a pathway institution for families without a prior college-going tradition. Transfer enrollment is meaningful at 42.7%, signaling that NIU serves students who are restarting or accelerating their academic journeys as well as those entering directly from high school. Azimuth ranks Northern Illinois University #93 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. The six-year graduation rate stands at 48.7%, with 53.4% of Pell-eligible students completing within that window — a completion gap worth watching for students planning around financial aid timelines. Freshman retention is 69.6%. For graduates from low-income backgrounds, median earnings reach $46,300 on a historical ten-year Scorecard measure, placing this cohort in the 69.5 percentile for low-income graduate earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Northern Illinois University #123 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. As explored in Azimuth's Illinois data analysis, institutions like NIU that serve large shares of Pell and first-generation students can generate meaningful aggregate mobility even when per-student earnings gains are moderate — the scale at which access is extended matters alongside the earnings outcomes themselves.
Northern Illinois University admits 69.8% of applicants, making it a broadly accessible institution for students across Illinois and the region. Among enrolled undergraduates, 47.3% receive Pell Grants and 38.3% are first-generation college students — figures that reflect NIU's long-standing role as a pathway institution for families without a prior college-going tradition. Transfer enrollment is meaningful at 42.7%, signaling that NIU serves students who are restarting or accelerating their academic journeys as well as those entering directly from high school. Azimuth ranks Northern Illinois University #93 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. The six-year graduation rate stands at 48.7%, with 53.4% of Pell-eligible students completing within that window — a completion gap worth watching for students planning around financial aid timelines. Freshman retention is 69.6%. For graduates from low-income backgrounds, median earnings reach $46,300 on a historical ten-year Scorecard measure, placing this cohort in the 69.5 percentile for low-income graduate earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Northern Illinois University #123 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. As explored in Azimuth's Illinois data analysis, institutions like NIU that serve large shares of Pell and first-generation students can generate meaningful aggregate mobility even when per-student earnings gains are moderate — the scale at which access is extended matters alongside the earnings outcomes themselves.
Northern Illinois University admits 69.8% of applicants, making it a broadly accessible institution for students across Illinois and the region. Among enrolled undergraduates, 47.3% receive Pell Grants and 38.3% are first-generation college students — figures that reflect NIU's long-standing role as a pathway institution for families without a prior college-going tradition. Transfer enrollment is meaningful at 42.7%, signaling that NIU serves students who are restarting or accelerating their academic journeys as well as those entering directly from high school. Azimuth ranks Northern Illinois University #93 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. The six-year graduation rate stands at 48.7%, with 53.4% of Pell-eligible students completing within that window — a completion gap worth watching for students planning around financial aid timelines. Freshman retention is 69.6%. For graduates from low-income backgrounds, median earnings reach $46,300 on a historical ten-year Scorecard measure, placing this cohort in the 69.5 percentile for low-income graduate earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Northern Illinois University #123 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. As explored in Azimuth's Illinois data analysis, institutions like NIU that serve large shares of Pell and first-generation students can generate meaningful aggregate mobility even when per-student earnings gains are moderate — the scale at which access is extended matters alongside the earnings outcomes themselves.
