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Northern Illinois University

Office of the Bursar

Fees and Common Charges

The expenses listed below are the majority of fees and common charges, in addition to tuition, that a student may incur at NIU:

  • General Fees (On-Campus Only)

    General fees are assessed to all students taking courses at our main campus in DeKalb and are charged at a per credit hour rate up to a maximum of 12 credit hours for a semester. See below for a breakdown (source: Student Affair's Office):

    • Activity Fee: The NIU Student Association makes allocations to support student activities and programs including concerts, films, speakers, etc. Additional information about these fee-supported activities and programs may be obtained from the Student Association.
    • Athletic Fee: These collected fees support the university's intercollegiate athletic programs for both men and women.
    • Facilities Fee: These collected fees support campus facilities which were constructed as a result of bond issues with covenants stipulating the terms of repayment, maintenance of cash reserves, building maintenance, and capital improvements. The collected student fees support the terms of the bond covenants and the operating costs of the facilities such as Holmes Student Center, Recreation Center, and Convocation Center.
    • Services Fee:
      • Busing: These collected fees support the university's campus and community-wide bus service. Fee-paying students are eligible to utilize Huskie Line buses without being charged fares.
      • Graduate Colloquium (Graduate Only): These collected fees support programs sponsored as part of the Graduate Colloquium Series.
      • Grants-In-Aid: These collected fees support the university's grants-in-aid program, a merit based scholarship program.
      • Health Service: These collected fees support the University Health Service which provides comprehensive ambulatory health care for students while the university is in session. Information about the university's health care services may be obtained from the University Health Service.
      • Law Student Bar (Law Only):  These collected fees support programs of the College of Law.
    • Student Resource Fee (Undergrad Only): This fee is assessed to all students who register for 12 or more on-campus semester credit hours of instruction. It is a needs-based Financial Aid fund for students, and the state contributes matching funds.

For the current general fee rates, select undergraduate, graduate, or law as appropriate for your program of study.


  • Technology Surcharge

    The technology surcharge is assessed to all NIU students at all of our campus locations and is charged at a per semester rate. Revenues from the technology surcharge are being used to replace the data system which supports all student services, to maintain and update existing technology equipment, to provide internet access and support interactive education on the web, and to train faculty in the use of smart classroom technology and WEB-based resources for instruction. For the current technology surcharge rate, select undergraduate, graduate, or law as appropriate for your program of study.


  • Student Major Medical Insurance

    Students registered for nine or more on-campus credit hours, participate in a foreign study program, or are international students, will be charged the student health insurance premium. Insurance is charged on a per semester rate. For the current insurance rate, select undergraduate, graduate, or law as appropriate for your program of study..

    Students can opt out of this insurance coverage and request a cancellation of the fee if they are covered by an insurance plan with benefits equal to or better than the NIU coverage. To opt out of the insurance students must contact the Student Insurance Office prior to the beginning of the semester or within the first 15 calendar days (not class days) of the semester. Only the Student Insurance Office can remove the insurance premium from the student’s account. For more information on student medical insurance or for questions regarding student medical coverage select student insurance or call the Student Insurance Office at (815) 753-0122.


  • Material Fees

    Material fees are charged per course for special materials specific to the course.  All associated costs are reflected on the student's financial account via MyNIU. For additional information on any material fee, please contact the department that is offering the course of study.


  • Course Delivery Fees (Off-Campus Only)

    If you are taking courses at one of our regional campuses, an off campus location, or online, you are charged a course delivery fee which is assessed at a per credit hour rate. These fees are used to support infrastructure needed to deliver regional courses (e.g., operations of NIU regional centers, rental of non - NIU facilities, faculty travel and development of online courses). For the current course delivery fee rates, select undergraduate, graduate, or law as appropriate for your program of study.


  • Regional Course Charges (Special Off-Campus Courses Only)

    Certain off-campus courses are more costly to produce at these locations and are assessed a regional course charge which can vary from $50 to $315 per credit hour. Information whether a course has a regional course charge and the amount of that charge can be found on the semester course schedule with the class and section information for the course, or through the Outreach Programs website.


  • Bookstore Charges

    For a limited time at the beginning of the fall and spring semesters, students receiving financial aid awards are allowed to charge up to $700.00 of books and school supplies ($350.00 for Summer). Books can be purchased at the University Bookstore or the Village Commons Bookstore, and will be charged to their student billing account. Note: Bookstore charges added to your student account will appear on your next monthly account statement and will be subject to interest in accordance with the payment policy. 


  • Late Immunization Fee

    All students accepted at NIU must provide immunization records in accordance with the Illinois College Student Immunization Act. Students late in turning in their records are fined a late immunization fee by Health Services.


  • Parking

    Parking Permits are required to park in most parking lots on campus. If you do not have the required permit for the lot in which you are parked you will be issued a parking ticket. For more specific information on parking regulations and permits please select Campus Parking.


  • Pharmacy Charges

    University Health Service has a pharmacy where students can get prescriptions filled. Please select pharmacy for more information.


  • Room and Board Charges

    Students who wish to live on campus in the residence halls sign a room lease for the academic year and are charged room and board fees per semester. This also includes a resident net access & support charge and an optional contractual agreement of Huskie Bucks.  For the current residence hall rates, please visit Housing and Dining.

  • Telecommunications Charges

    For students residing in the residence halls and university housing (Northern View), telephones are provided in the rooms. For more information on the charges, please select telecommunications.