Major Programs and Completers by Degrees

Degree Programs Overview

Northern Illinois University offers 164 degree programs through Bachelor's, Master's, Doctorate, Post-Graduate Certificate programs. Of that, 11 programs can be conferred by distance learning.

A total of 4,002 students completed certificate or degree programs between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023 at Northern Illinois. 2,552 students completed bachelor's programs and 1,172 completed master's programs.

The following table summarizes the number of major programs by offered degrees with number of completers( graduates ) at Northern Illinois. It only includes students who completed a program as the first major.

Total Number of Programs and Completers By Degree
	Total Programs	Online Programs	Completers
	Total Programs	Online Programs	Total	Men	Women
Bachelor's	66	3	2,552	1,173	1,379
Master's	68	6	1,172	493	679
Doctor's	27	2	250	108	142
Post-Graduate Certificate	3	NOT OFFERED	28	12	16

Programs with Highest Earning After Graduation

The following table lists the best programs with the highest salary after graduation from Northern Illinois University. Note that the average salary and debt is based on 2020 data from College Scorecard.

The Mechanical Engineering program has the highest salary ($74,168) after graduation and the Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering program is reported as the second-highest earning program with a $74,151 average salary.

Bachelor Programs - Highest Earning After Graduation
Field of Study	Average Salary (2020)		Average Loan Debt
Field of Study	Yearly	Monthly	Yearly	Monthly
Mechanical Engineering	$74,168	$6,181	$23,125	$245
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering	$74,151	$6,179	$22,500	$239
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	$71,741	$5,978	$25,000	$265
Computer Science	$68,991	$5,749	$21,004	$223
Industrial Engineering	$68,055	$5,671	$23,750	$252
Engineering Technology	$64,699	$5,392	$27,250	$289
Accounting and Related Services	$64,021	$5,335	$15,342	$163
Finance and Financial Management Services	$60,130	$5,011	$15,250	$162
Business Administration, Management and Operations	$58,425	$4,869	$21,000	$223
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions	$57,749	$4,812	$18,000	$191
Economics	$55,873	$4,656	$24,976	$265
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods	$54,900	$4,575	$20,000	$212

Master Programs - Highest Earning After Graduation
Field of Study	Average Salary (2020)		Average Loan Debt
Field of Study	Yearly	Monthly	Yearly	Monthly
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	$96,563	$8,047	$44,065	$501
Business Administration, Management and Operations	$94,214	$7,851	$32,950	$375
Management Information Systems and Services	$76,350	$6,363	-	-
Computer Science	$75,980	$6,332	-	-
Accounting and Related Services	$72,760	$6,063	$20,500	$233
Educational/Instructional Media Design	$58,262	$4,855	$23,063	$262
Public Administration	$58,230	$4,853	$30,500	$347
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services	$57,934	$4,828	$44,534	$507
Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services	$55,845	$4,654	-	-
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas	$52,513	$4,376	$24,901	$283
Special Education and Teaching	$50,553	$4,213	$26,549	$302
Health and Physical Education/Fitness	$49,481	$4,123	-	-

Doctoral Programs - Highest Earning After Graduation
Field of Study	Average Salary (2020)		Average Loan Debt
Field of Study	Yearly	Monthly	Yearly	Monthly
Educational Administration and Supervision	$125,726	$10,477	-	-
Psychology, General	$73,940	$6,162	-	-
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions	$72,792	$6,066	$61,500	$700

Popular Programs with Most Completers

Following programs are popular with most enrolled students at Northern Illinois University.

At the school, the Psychology Bachelor program has the most completers of 209 and the Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse Bachelor program has the second most completers of 153 students.

Popular Bachelor Programs
Field of Study	Number of Completers	Men	Women
Psychology	209	62	147
Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse	153	23	130
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs (other)	138	39	99
Marketing/Marketing Management	118	70	48
Computer Science	108	98	10
Mechanical Engineering	101	91	10
Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies	97	49	48
Elementary Education and Teaching	94	6	88
Speech Communication and Rhetoric	92	60	32
Accounting	82	51	31

Popular Master Programs
Field of Study	Number of Completers	Men	Women
Business Administration and Management	122	74	48
Information Technology	105	64	41
Special Education and Teaching	76	10	66
Management Science	63	38	25
Computer Science	60	42	18
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (other)	55	28	27
Reading Teacher Education	51	6	45
Marketing (other)	49	12	37
Public Health	41	4	37
Public Administration	33	20	13

Popular Doctoral Programs
Field of Study	Number of Completers	Men	Women
Adult and Continuing Education Administration	21	6	15
Educational Leadership and Administration	15	6	9
Psychology	12	3	9
Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services	10	3	7
Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences (other)	10	2	8
Curriculum and Instruction	9	2	7
Physics	9	7	2
Educational/Instructional Technology	5	3	2
Chemistry	5	4	1
Educational Psychology	5	3	2

Field of Study by Degree and Number of Completers

Below tables describes the major programs by offered degrees. You can check the online learning availability of each programs with number of completers. By expanding each table, you can view the major programs in the area of study that you select.

What is Area, Ethnic, Cultural, Gender, and Group Studies program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Environmental Studies	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	36	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Communication and Journalism program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	3	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Computer and Information Sciences program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Speech Communication and Rhetoric	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	92	8	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Journalism	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	15	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Education program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Information Technology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	105	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Computer Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	108	60	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Engineering program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Education	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	7	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Curriculum and Instruction	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	9	9	NOT OFFERED
Educational Leadership and Administration	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	16	15	19
Adult and Continuing Education Administration	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	22^ONLINE	21^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED
Higher Education/Higher Education Administration	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED
Educational Administration and Supervision (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	17^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Educational/Instructional Technology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	24	5	NOT OFFERED
Educational Evaluation and Research	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	4	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Special Education and Teaching	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	48	76	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	23	10	NOT OFFERED
Elementary Education and Teaching	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	94	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Junior High/Intermediate/Middle School Education and Teaching	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	18	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Early Childhood Education and Teaching	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	34	4	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Art Teacher Education	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	13	11	1	NOT OFFERED
Health Teacher Education	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Physical Education Teaching and Coaching	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	27	30	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Reading Teacher Education	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	51	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Biology Teacher Education	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Engineering Technology program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	15	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Electrical and Electronics Engineering	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	41	8	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Mechanical Engineering	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	101	11	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Industrial Engineering	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	11	33	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Foreign Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Engineering/Industrial Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	18	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Work and Family Studies program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
German Language and Literature	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
French Language and Literature	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	7	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Spanish Language and Literature	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	21	2	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Legal Studies program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Human Development and Family Studies	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	62	16	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Apparel and Textiles	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	18	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is English Language and Literature program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Law	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	90	NOT OFFERED

What is Liberal Arts and Sciences, Humanities program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
English Language and Literature	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	45	10	2	NOT OFFERED

What is Biological and Biomedical Sciences program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	97	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Mathematics and Statistics program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Biology/Biological Sciences	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	66	17	0	NOT OFFERED

What is Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Mathematics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	28	9	3	NOT OFFERED
Financial Mathematics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	10	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Statistics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	8	6	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Parks, Recreation, Leisure, and Fitness Studies program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Philosophy and Religious Studies program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Health and Physical Education/Fitness	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	60	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Sport and Fitness Administration/Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	24	17	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Kinesiology and Exercise Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	1	NOT OFFERED

What is Physical Sciences program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Philosophy	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	7	9	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Psychology program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	10	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Chemistry	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	18	6	5	NOT OFFERED
Geology/Earth Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	9	8	0	NOT OFFERED
Physics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	5	5	9	NOT OFFERED

What is Human Services program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Psychology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	209	9	12	NOT OFFERED
School Psychology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	2
Educational Psychology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	5	NOT OFFERED

What is Social Sciences program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Public Administration	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	33	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Visual and Performing Arts program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Anthropology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	11	4	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Criminology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	8	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Economics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	15	0	0	NOT OFFERED
Econometrics and Quantitative Economics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	2	1	NOT OFFERED
Geography	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	13	3	0	NOT OFFERED
Political Science and Government	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	57	7	2	NOT OFFERED
Sociology	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	34	4	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	33	2	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Art/Art Studies	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	21	2	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Fine/Studio Arts	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	46	4	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Art History, Criticism and Conservation	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	1	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Fine Arts and Art Studies (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED
Music	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	5	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Music Performance	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	30	30	NOT OFFERED	9

What is Business program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Communication Sciences and Disorders	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	41	15	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Audiology/Audiologist	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	6	NOT OFFERED
Athletic Training/Trainer	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	7	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	20	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	138^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	26	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Public Health	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	41	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Health Services Administration	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	3	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Physical Therapy/Therapist	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	32	NOT OFFERED
Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling/Counselor	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	5	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Dietetics/Dietitian	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	23	13	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	153	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Nursing Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	32^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Nursing Practice	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	9^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED
Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	10	NOT OFFERED

What is History program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Business Administration and Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	53	122	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Operations Management and Supervision	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	55	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Accounting	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	82	15^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Finance	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	54	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Financial Risk Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Hospitality Administration/Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	16	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Management Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	74^ONLINE	63^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Business Statistics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Actuarial Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	5	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	55	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Marketing/Marketing Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	118	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Marketing (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	49^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Taxation	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED

What is History program?

	Certificate	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctorate	Post-Graduate
Business Administration and Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	53	122	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Operations Management and Supervision	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	55	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Accounting	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	82	15^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Finance	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	54	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Financial Risk Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Hospitality Administration/Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	16	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Management Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	74^ONLINE	63^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Business Statistics	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Actuarial Science	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	5	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	55	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Marketing/Marketing Management	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	118	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Marketing (other)	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	49^ONLINE	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
Taxation	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	0	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED
History	NOT OFFERED	NOT OFFERED	32	7	2	NOT OFFERED

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Major Programs and Degree Completers at Northern Illinois

Degree Programs Overview

Programs with Highest Earning After Graduation

Popular Programs with Most Completers

Field of Study by Degree and Number of Completers

Ratings & Review