Public · University

Indiana University-Northwest

Gary, Indiana · Large suburb

#2 best value in Indiana
73.4%
Admit rate
$5,130
Avg net price
37%
Graduation rate
$43,361
Median earnings

Indiana University-Northwest is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Gary, Indiana (large suburb setting), enrolling 2,661 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI).

PublicMidsize · 2,661 undergradsLarge suburbAccessible · 73% admitNAIA Division IICold wintersSnowy

Will you get in?

See where your numbers land against Indiana University-Northwest's admitted students.

Admit rate
73.4%
SAT (mid 50%)
910–1180
Avg GPA (est.)
3.07

Enter a test score to see where you land against Indiana University-Northwest's admitted students.

A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Indiana University-Northwest's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.

About Gary, Indiana

Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. Gary, Indiana, was founded in 1906 by the U.S. Steel corporation as the home for its new plant, Gary Works. The city was named after lawyer Elbert Henry Gary, who was the founding chairman of the United States Steel Corporation. Meredith Willson's 1957 Broadway musical The Music Man featured the song "Gary, Indiana", in which lead character (and con man) Professor Harold Hill wistfully recalls his purported hometown, then prosperous. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
27 miles to Chicago, IL
To Great Lakes shore
5 miles
Nearest airport
6 miles to Gary/Chicago (GYY)

How Indiana University-Northwest compares

Selectivity73.4%

More selective than 57% · #14 most selective of 42 in Indiana

SAT average1055

Higher than 18%

Graduation rate37%

Higher than 19% · #39 of 45 in Indiana

First-year retention71%

Higher than 34%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$43,361

Higher than 20% · #43 of 44 in Indiana

Average net price$5,130

Cheaper than 98% · #2 cheapest of 45 in Indiana

Median debt at graduation$21,710

Lower than 61%

Student–faculty ratio15 : 1

Lower than 35%

Undergraduate enrollment2,661

Larger than 66%

Percentiles compare Indiana University-Northwest with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Indiana.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

2,924students
  • Undergraduate2,66191%
  • Graduate2639%

Undergraduates by gender

2,661undergrads
  • Women1,87871%
  • Men78329%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White42%
  • Black20%
  • Hispanic30%
  • Asian2.9%
  • Other or multiracial5.6%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
2,661
Graduate enrollment
263
Student–faculty ratio
15 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
43%
First-generation students
45%
Students over 25
24%
Median family income
$36,436
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$68,058
Endowment
$16,984,637

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 470 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Indiana95%
  • Other U.S. states4.7%

Most first-years stay in state — Indiana University-Northwest draws overwhelmingly from Indiana.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
73.4%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
910–1180
SAT average
1055
SAT reading
460–600
SAT math
450–580
ACT composite
18–26
Average GPA (estimated)
3.07

Cost

In-state tuition
$8,424
Out-of-state tuition
$22,811
Room & board
Books & supplies
$1,166
Total cost of attendance
$13,989
Average net price
$5,130

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
37%
Graduated on time (4 years)
20%
First-year retention
71%
Transferred to another college
23%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$39,714
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$43,361
Median debt at graduation
$21,710
Students with federal loans
34%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
31%

About 17% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
20%
Low-income (Pell)
29%
First-generation
29%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
No
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NAIA Division II
Varsity athletes
100 (42 men · 58 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (4)

Soccer51
Basketball31
Volleyball16
Cross Country2

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
0
Property offenses (2022–2024)
1

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (3,041 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

0.3reported offenses a year
0 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft
0.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$1,419
$30–48k
$331
$48–75k
$5,159
$75–110k
$10,047
$110k+
$13,042

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$24,240

$5,159/year × about 4.7 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

32%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$2,033
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 32% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $2,033. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 389 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$43,361
Typical debt at graduation
$21,710
Debt vs. one year's pay
50%
Out-earn a HS grad
53%

Typical debt would take roughly 5.0 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$39,509
Men
$51,923

Men out-earn women by $12,414 (31%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
82°F
Winter low
18°F
Annual rain
39.2″
Annual snow
40.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.14.3JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Indiana Dunes NL, IN US station (13.9 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Indiana University-Northwest

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Indiana University-Northwest side by side →

Colleges near Indiana University-Northwest

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.