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Northern Illinois University
- Parking

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Northern Illinois University - Parking - Parking - College ProwlerCollege Prowler2.69

Parking

C+
Where does this grade come from?View all Parking rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Parking Grades:

Quick Stats

Student Parking Lot? Yes
Freshmen Allowed to Park? Yes
Approximate Parking Permit Cost $37–$75 per academic year
Common Parking Tickets
  • Failure to remove a non-current NIU parking permit: $5
  • Failure to use flashers in a loading/unloading space: $5
  • Meter violation: $10
  • Handicapped space use violation: $250
Best Places to Find a Spot The Convocation Center has tons of spots, although it is quite far away from campus. The lot at the Newman Catholic Student Center near the Campus Life building is almost always open, has a convenient location, and sells daily parking permits.
Good Luck Getting a Spot Here
  • The lot located next to the Chick Evans Field House and across from DuSable Hall is always filled and contains spots for permits that no one seems to have.
  • Just as bad is the lot for the Recreation Center, which will certainly give students' nerves a workout.

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

The only saving grace when it comes to parking at NIU is that even freshman can get a parking permit their first year on campus, and for a fair price, too. However, the lack of parking in the most popular locations is frustrating, and tickets can pile up very quickly if you aren’t careful. Parking enforcement is unbelievably stringent. Many students are convinced that parking enforcement employees could find Osama Bin Laden if they put their minds to it. Instead, they devote their days to writing tickets for even the most petty infractions, bringing in more than 400 thousand (!) dollars each year from fines that range from reasonable to heart attack-inducing. Students don’t help the situation at all when they drive to classes that they could easily walk to, taking away spaces from commuters who are often seen driving around parking lots for nearly an hour to find a space that is both legal and open. Still, a car is a must if you want to have a life at NIU, so you just have to grin and bear it—something which they aren’t fining students for . . . yet.

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Northern Illinois Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Parking at Northern Illinois University

govallaw19

Electrical and Electronics Engineering '15

2.3
C

Basically No Free Parking

For a campus which offers a bus service, there is really no use for a car. In that case, you would expect there to be more free parking spaces. However, that is not the case as there is very limited free parking during the week. Those free parking space are always really far from your destination and its not worth it so one just ends up paying for the parking.

Mar 20, 2012

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Parking at Northern Illinois University

Britnie33

Nursing '14

3.1
B-

Raising Prices

They keep raising the pricing for parking each year. It's annual and better than most schools, but for living on campus the parking spots are far from most dorms.

Feb 15, 2012

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Parking at Northern Illinois University

herefordjohnson

Electrical and Electronics Engineering '15

1.5
D+

Do Not Bring a Car

You'll have no where to park except the weekends when everyone leaves.

Jan 22, 2012

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Page 1 of 10
User rating for Northern Illinois University - Parking is 2.3 out of 5 based on 28 user reviews.

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the campus parking on the following topics

How convenient is off-campus parking?

Facts

Getting a Parking Permit

Parking permits are obtained from Campus Parking Services and through their Web site. They are easily attainable by all NIU students.

Parking ServicesWhat's This?

NIU Campus Parking Services
121 Normal Rd.
(815) 753-1045
www.niu.edu/parking

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How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. The statistics on our site are from the National Center for Education Statistics IPEDS database.
We update this information twice annually, most recently in May 2012, but it may not be the most recent information available for a particular school.
For additional information we encourage you to visit school websites or contact the schools directly.