Northern Illinois University

Department of Psychology

Student Admissions, Outcomes, and Other Data

To provide prospective doctoral students with relevant and important information about our program the following data are provided:

  • time to completion
  • program costs
  • internship success rates
  • attrition rates
  • licensure and certification rates

All of these data are based on the past 7 years and on doctoral graduate students only.

Time to Completion

The average number of years to graduate our program with a doctoral degree 6.8 years and the median time to graduation was 7 years (n = 13).

Number of years
to graduation
n %
<5 3 23
5 0 0
6 1 8
7 6 46
>7 3 23

Program Costs

Please note that the majority of our students obtain assistantships.  In fact, during the past 7 years, all doctoral students who have requested assistantships have obtained one from the Psychology Department.  Assistantships are either Research Assistantships (RA) or Teaching Assistantships (TA) and are either half-time (10 hours per week) or full-time (20 hours per week.).  All students with an assistantship obtain a full tuition waiver (students still have to pay fees) and receive a stipend of $669.30 per month for a half-time and $1338.60 for a full-time assistantship (based on 11-12 assistantship rates). 

Fall 2010/Spring 2011 # of Hours DeKalb Campus, (per hour)
Tuition, In-State* 1 - 12 hrs $320.40
Tuition, Out-of-State* 1 - 12 hrs $640.80
Activity Fee* 1 - 12 hrs $1.81
Athletic Fee* 1 - 12 hrs $20.12
Facilities Fee* 1 - 12 hrs $41.86
Services Fee* 1 - 12 hrs $20.17
Course Delivery Fees 1 hr or more Only off-campus courses $56.00
Technology Surcharge 6 hrs or less $125.00 per term
  7 hrs or more $250.00 per term

Internship Success Rates

Year  # Applied Obtained Paid APA-Accredited APPIC CAPPIC CDSPP 2 year, half-time
04-05 1 1   (100%) 1  (100%) NR NR NR NR 0
05-06 0 0   (100%) 0  (100%) NR NR NR NR 0
06-07 4 4   (100%) 4  (100%) NR NR NR NR 0
07-08 2 2   (100%) 2  (100%) NR NR NR NR 0
08-09 2 2   (100%) 2  (100%) NR NR NR NR 0
09-10 1 1   (100%) 1  (100%) NR NR NR NR 0
10-11 0 0  (100%) 0  (100%) 0 0 0 0 0

Note: NR = Not Recorded, just started tracking these data

*Please note that typically our students choose not to apply for APA-accredited internships for various reasons (e.g., location, want a specific school-based site, etc.).  In the last 7 years only three students applied for an APA-accredited internship and all three obtained one that year.  In addition, many of our students obtain their first choice for an internship in other high quality internship settings.

Attrition Rates

Year of
enrollment
#
Enrolled
# Graduated
with a doctorate
# Still currently
enrolled
# No longer
enrolled
2004 1 0 1 (100%) 0
2005 2 1 (50%) 0 1 (50%)
2006 2 0 2 (100%) 0
2007 1 0 1 (100%) 0
2008 3 0 2 (67%) 1 (33%)
2009 2 0 2 (100%) 0
2010 4 0 4 (100%) 0

Licensure and Certification

One of 13 program graduates from the years 2005-2011 has become a Licensed Psychologist (8%). Thirteen of the 13 graduates are Certified School Psychologists (100%).

Available Scholarships for Minority Candidates

The university has an active recruitment office for graduate students from underrepresented groups. The Rhoten A. Smith Assistantship Program provides stipends and full tuition waivers to women and minority graduate students who are underrepresented in their fields. Eligible graduate students can also receive an Underrepresented Student Tuition Waiver Scholarship. The Diversifying Higher Education Faculty in Illinois (DFI) Fellowship Program provides up to $16,000 annually for eligible African-American, Latino, Asian-American and Native American graduate students committed to a career in higher education within Illinois. The Carter G. Woodson Scholars Program provides a $14,300 stipend and a $500 relocation allowance for first-year eligible African American, Latino and Native American doctoral students. Doctoral students from underrepresented or disadvantaged backgrounds may also be eligible for the Ronald McNair Tuition Waiver Scholarship.