Quad

Head-to-head

Northern Illinois
CUNY Queens

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    Northern Illinois's grants cover 48% of its full price on average, vs. 25% at CUNY Queens

    Aid generosity
  2. 2

    Northern Illinois costs about $6.9K less per year on average than CUNY Queens ($15,527 vs. $22,404, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  3. 3

    CUNY Queens has 9 pts more first-gen students than Northern Illinois (47% vs. 38%)

    First-generation students
  4. 4

    Northern Illinois graduates 8 pts more of its students than CUNY Queens (64% vs. 56%)

    Graduation rate
  5. 5

    CUNY Queens is more diverse (index 0.76 vs. 0.71)

    Diversity index
  6. 6

    CUNY Queens grads earn $5K more ten years out than Northern Illinois's ($62,763 vs. $57,808)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs

The shape of each school

Each axis is a national rank among 4-year colleges; further out = more of it.

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Hollow dots at the center mean that measure isn't reported.

Who's hardest to get into

CUNY Queens admits 64%, Northern Illinois 70%; both have the same yield, 12%.

Acceptance rate
Northern Illinois70%
CUNY Queens64%
Quad's selectivity
  • Northern IllinoisAccessible
  • CUNY QueensSelective
SAT middle 50%Axis 900–1600
Northern IllinoisTest-blind
CUNY Queens
1010–1290
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • Northern IllinoisGPA, school record, rank, and prep program required
  • CUNY QueensGPA, school record, and prep program required

Who's on each campus

CUNY Queens is a bit larger than Northern Illinois (12,550 vs. 11,301 undergrads); both have the same Pell share, 47%.

Undergrads
Northern Illinois11.3K
CUNY Queens12.6K
Pell Grant share
Northern Illinois47%
CUNY Queens47%

Majors and faculty

Psychology leads at both; CUNY Queens has 13 students per faculty member to Northern Illinois's 15.

Students per faculty member
Northern Illinois15 to 1
CUNY Queens13 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • Northern IllinoisPsychology, General9%
  • CUNY QueensPsychology, General20%

What each costs

Northern Illinois costs about $6.9K less a year than CUNY Queens on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Northern Illinois$15.5K
CUNY Queens$22.4K
Aid generosity
Northern Illinois48%
CUNY Queens25%

What each pays off

CUNY Queens's former students earn more, a median $62.8K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 50% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Northern Illinois$57.8K
CUNY Queens$62.8K
Graduation rate
Northern Illinois64%
CUNY Queens56%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got less selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • Northern IllinoisGrowing+19%
  • CUNY QueensGrowing+21%
All the numbersEvery figure for these colleges in one table, with differences highlighted.
Sources for this comparisonEvery dataset and year behind the numbers in this comparison; tap any ⓘ for one number's source

Sources:IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey, 2023–24;IPEDS Student Financial Aid survey, 2023–24;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part D), Fall 2024;IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2024–25 graduates;College Scorecard, 2023–24;IPEDS Graduation Rates survey (Pell Grant and subsidized loan recipients), Entered fall 2018About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why