Quad

Head-to-head

CUNY City
Northern Illinois

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. 28% at CUNY City

    Aid generosity
  2. 2

    CUNY City has 13 pts more Pell recipients than Northern Illinois (61% vs. 47%)

    Pell Grant recipients
  3. 3

    Northern Illinois costs about $6.9K less per year on average than CUNY City ($15,527 vs. $22,466, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  4. 4

    CUNY City grads earn $8.2K more ten years out than Northern Illinois's ($66,039 vs. $57,808)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  5. 5

    CUNY City has 8 pts more first-gen students than Northern Illinois (46% vs. 38%)

    First-generation students
  6. 6

    Northern Illinois graduates 6 pts more of its students than CUNY City (64% vs. 58%)

    Graduation rate

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 City admits 60%, Northern Illinois 70%; both have the same yield, 12%.

Acceptance rate
CUNY City60%
Northern Illinois70%
Quad's selectivity
  • CUNY CitySelective
  • Northern IllinoisAccessible
SAT middle 50%Axis 1000–1600
CUNY City
1070–1430
Northern IllinoisTest-blind
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • CUNY CityGPA, school record, and prep program required
  • Northern IllinoisGPA, school record, rank, and prep program required

Who's on each campus

CUNY City is a bit larger than Northern Illinois (12,505 vs. 11,301 undergrads) and has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
CUNY City12.5K
Northern Illinois11.3K
Pell Grant share
CUNY City61%
Northern Illinois47%

Majors and faculty

Psychology leads at both; both have 15 students per faculty member.

Students per faculty member
CUNY City15 to 1
Northern Illinois15 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • CUNY CityPsychology, General22%
  • Northern IllinoisPsychology, General9%

What each costs

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

Average cost, all students
CUNY City$22.5K
Northern Illinois$15.5K
Aid generosity
CUNY City28%
Northern Illinois48%

What each pays off

CUNY City's former students earn more, a median $66K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 50% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
CUNY City$66K
Northern Illinois$57.8K
Graduation rate
CUNY City58%
Northern Illinois64%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got less selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • CUNY CityGrowing+63%
  • Northern IllinoisGrowing+19%
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