Northern Illinois University - Campus Housing

Quick Stats

College Prowler Take

Because they view them as more than a simple living space, NIU prefers to call its dorms “residential halls.” It’s a nice thought, but dorm rooms don’t compare all that favorably to jail cells—they are small and cramped, and you are stuck with your roommates whether you like them or not. Most freshmen end up in Grant, which hasn’t been properly updated since it was built in the 1960s, and things only get worse when extreme temperatures make living very uncomfortable. The kind janitorial staff is often abused by vandals or students who simply don’t clean up after themselves. As a result, the bathrooms can get nasty, and students end up paying floor fines to clean up vandalism they did not commit. NIU requires all freshmen to live on campus, but you could call it a necessary evil because dorm life forces new students to break out of their shells and meet new people, which is essential to a positive experience at NIU. You can tell how cool your floor will be by the percentage of students who keep their doors open—closed doors are a bad sign—but no matter what, you will end up making some of your best friends and worst enemies on your floor. At the very least, every dorm has a computer lab and dining hall, and the Residence Hall Association does an excellent job of programming events and looking out for the needs of students.

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Students Speak Out

Anonymous says:

Let me make this clear: Avoid... Let me make this clear: Avoid Grant at all costs! Grant is the most run-down, cramped dorm on campus. If you can, try to get into Lincoln or Douglas as a freshman. There are floors and wings dedicated to specific colleges, international students, and students in the honors program. You get more room to move around and more closet space, but it’s at the expense of sleeping on bunk beds. For upperclassmen, Stevenson is a great place to live, although it’s so far away from everything that you’re reliant on the buses. 12345 Campus Housing Report

Anonymous says:

Since I have only lived in one of... Since I have only lived in one of them (Lincoln), I will just say that I could do without living on a floor with 50 other girls. The bathrooms were kind of gross. However, the positives were the security measures. 12345 Campus Housing Report

Anonymous says:

The dorms are okay. They... The dorms are okay. They weren’t as bad as I expected. Everyone here calls Grant Towers, ‘Ghetto Grant,’ but I didn’t think that it was that bad at all. In Grant, you don’t have to sleep on bunk beds like in Douglas or Lincoln. I hate bunk beds. By far, the nicest dorms are Stevenson. 12345 Campus Housing Report

Anonymous says:

I lived in the suites in Lincoln,... I lived in the suites in Lincoln, and they are very nice—not as expensive as Stevenson, but still really nice. Stevenson’s dorms, though, are definitely the nicest. Some even have their own bathroom in them. I wasn’t in Grant much, but it’s the ‘ghetto dorm. 12345 Campus Housing Report

Anonymous says:

Avoid Grant! It is scary. Also,... Avoid Grant! It is scary. Also, avoid standing outside Lincoln and Douglas, unless you want to be in the middle of freshman land. 12345 Campus Housing Report

Facts

Did You Know?

In 2002, the University Police established a regular presence in residence halls by setting up five Community Safety Centers, which are staffed by police approximately 24 hours a day. So you will likely see officers eating in dining halls or patrolling floors on a regular basis. The program was credited with an almost 60-percent reduction in criminal incidents in residence halls during its first term in operation.

In 2003, smoking was banned inside every residence hall.

All campus residents get free cable and access to NIU’s movie channel, which features classics voted on by the students, as well as movies recently released to video.

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