Lewis University vs Northern Illinois University (NIU)

Lewis University and Northern Illinois University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning in Illinois, offer distinct educational experiences. Lewis University, a private Catholic university, boasts a smaller student body and a higher acceptance rate compared to Northern Illinois University, a public research university. While Lewis University excels in nursing, business, and education programs, Northern Illinois University shines in engineering, psychology, and biological sciences. Explore the detailed comparison table to delve into further differences, including student demographics, graduation rates, and additional program offerings, to determine which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Lewis University	Northern Illinois University
Overview
Location	Romeoville, Illinois	Dekalb, Illinois
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	75.0%	67.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Catholic

Admission
Acceptance rate	71.3%	70.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $40	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $60
SAT range	1050 - 1240	N/A
ACT range	20 - 26	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	21.0%
Students submitting ACT score	9.0%
Total number of applicants	4,311	22,602
Total number of admissions given out	3,072	15,922
Admitted students who chose to enroll	567	2,285
Yield rate	18.5%	14.4%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$46,430	$27,218
Average net price	$18,312	$13,265
Tuition	$35,262	$9,606
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $6,876 Meal plan: $4,346	$11,098
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $25,284	98.0% Average amount $13,008
Students receiving federal student loan	52.0% Average amount $5,132	58.0% Average amount $5,313
Students taking out private loans	12.0% Average amount $16,524	5.0% Average amount $11,726

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,907 Men 49.6% Women 50.4%	11,834 Men 47.1% Women 52.9%
Graduate students	2,276 Men 38.0% Women 62.0%	4,400 Men 40.8% Women 59.2%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	11.9%	N/A
International students	9.2%	4.6%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Small
Dormitory capacity	1,106	4,500
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Illinois Indiana Minnesota Wisconsin Kansas	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Computer and Information Science Education Law Enforcement and Firefighting	Education Health Professions Business Engineering Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	13:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	60.5%	50.8%
Dropout rate	12.9%	46.9%
Transferred out	25.9%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,652 Year 2: $101,168 Year 3: $98,458 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $84,653 Year 3: $90,347 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,192 Year 2: $67,995 Year 3: $70,036 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $68,491 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,898 Year 2: $60,071 Year 3: $68,310 Air Transportation (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,241 Year 2: $44,542 Year 3: $59,224 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,836 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $56,533 Human Resources Management and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $49,019 Year 3: $55,432 Curriculum and Instruction (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $56,095 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $55,062 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,978 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $54,857	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

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