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Communication & Media Studies at Northern Illinois University

160 Bachelor's Degrees
14 Master's Degrees
#182 Overall Quality
The Communication & Media Studies major is part of the communication & journalism program at Northern Illinois University.

We've gathered data and other essential information about the program, such as the average salary of graduates, ethnicity of students, how many students graduated in recent times, and more. We've also included details on how NIU ranks compared to other colleges offering a major in communications.

Go directly to any of the following sections:

Communication & Media Studies Degrees Available at NIU

NIU Communications Rankings

The bachelor's program at NIU was ranked #182 on College Factual's Best Schools for communications list. It is also ranked #10 in Illinois.

Ranking Type Rank
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies 14
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies 16
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies 28
Best Value Graduate Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies 34
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (With Aid) 75
Highest Paid Master’s Degree Communication & Media Studies Graduates 77
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (With Aid) 90
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $75-$110k) 100
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $48-$75k) 103
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (With Aid) 106
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $75-$110k) 106
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income Over $110k) 111
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $30-$48k) 113
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $48-$75k) 117
Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $0-$30k) 122
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $75-$110k) 125
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income Over $110k) 127
Best Communication & Media Studies Master’s Degree Schools 129
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $48-$75k) 134
Best Communication & Media Studies Graduate Degree Schools 138
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income Over $110k) 146
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $30-$48k) 147
Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $0-$30k) 160
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $30-$48k) 166
Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools 169
Best Communication & Media Studies Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans 172
Best Communication & Media Studies Graduate Degree Colleges for Veterans 177
Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies (Income $0-$30k) 180
Best Communication & Media Studies Schools 182
Highest Paid Bachelor’s Degree Communication & Media Studies Graduates 214
Highest Paid Communication & Media Studies Graduates 225
Best Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Veterans 241
Best Communication & Media Studies Colleges for Veterans 258

Popularity of Communications at NIU

During the 2020-2021 academic year, Northern Illinois University handed out 160 bachelor's degrees in communication & media studies. This is a decrease of 2% over the previous year when 164 degrees were handed out.

In 2021, 14 students received their master’s degree in communications from NIU. This makes it the #79 most popular school for communications master’s degree candidates in the country.

How Much Do Communications Graduates from NIU Make?

$34,427 Bachelor's Median Salary

Salary of Communications Graduates with a Bachelor's Degree

Communications majors who earn their bachelor's degree from NIU go on to jobs where they make a median salary of $34,427 a year. This is great news for graduates of the program, since this figure is higher than the national average of $32,435 for all communications bachelor's degree recipients.

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How Much Student Debt Do Communications Graduates from NIU Have?

$27,000 Bachelor's Median Debt

Student Debt of Communications Graduates with a Bachelor's Degree

While getting their bachelor's degree at NIU, communications students borrow a median amount of $27,000 in student loans. This is higher than the the typical median of $25,333 for all communications majors across the country.

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The typical student loan payment of a bachelor's degree student from the communications program at NIU is $249 per month.

NIU Communications Students

Take a look at the following statistics related to the make-up of the communications majors at Northern Illinois University.

NIU Communication & Media Studies Bachelor’s Program

During the 2020-2021 academic year, 160 students graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications from NIU. About 58% were men and 42% were women.

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The majority of bachelor's degree recipients in this major at NIU are white. In the most recent graduating class for which data is available, 59% of students fell into this category.

The following table and chart show the ethnic background for students who recently graduated from Northern Illinois University with a bachelor's in communications.

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Ethnic Background Number of Students
Asian 3
Black or African American 25
Hispanic or Latino 25
White 95
Non-Resident Aliens 2
Other Races 10

NIU Communication & Media Studies Master’s Program

Of the 14 students who earned a master's degree in Communication & Media Studies from NIU in 2020-2021, 21% were men and 79% were women.

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The majority of the students with this major are white. About 79% of 2021 graduates were in this category.

The following table and chart show the ethnic background for students who recently graduated from Northern Illinois University with a master's in communications.

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Ethnic Background Number of Students
Asian 0
Black or African American 2
Hispanic or Latino 1
White 11
Non-Resident Aliens 0
Other Races 0

Majors Similar to Communications

Related Major Annual Graduates
Journalism 17

View All Communication & Media Studies Related Majors >

References

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