NIU is number two.

Daniel Oborn, director of Admissions, said NIU is the second most attended state school in Illinois.

In addition to the various academic programs, students choose NIU because of its location and cost.

More than 90 percent of the students come from the northern one-third of the state, which includes the Chicagoland area, Oborn said.

NIU has accepted 7,258 freshmen since July 3 out of 12,188 applicants, he said.

Oborn said 3,297 transfer students of 5,882 applicants have been accepted.

The reasons for rejected applications include incomplete paperwork, denials and student cancellations, he said.

Due to the universities plan to limit enrollment, 6.8 percent fewer freshmen applicants were accepted than last year, Oborn said. There were 3.7 percent fewer freshmen applying also, Oborn said.

However, 3.4 percent more transfer students were accepted and their applications increased by 5 percent.

Fewer freshmen applications are the result of fewer high school graduations and increased entrance requirements due to limited enrollment, Oborn said.

According to a Chicago Tribune survey, the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana is the first choice of in-state universities by high school graduates.

Doug Donoho, college counselor at Buffalo Grove High School, said his students are state-school oriented.

Of the 113 graduates from Buffalo Grove High School going to Illinois universities, 34 are going to U of I, 19 are going to NIU, and 24 are going to Illinois State University in Normal, Donoho said. About 117 students are going to out-of-state universities.

Although U of I is the first choice, many students are not accepted, he said.

The primary reasons why students choose these schools instead of private or out-of-state schools are the cost, closeness, and student population, Donoho said.

“U of I is close enough for a three day weekend, but not too close for Wednesday dinner,” he said.

However, some students are “more into name,” such as the big 10 and big eight schools, Donoho said.

Students often are influenced by their parents who usually went to state schools, he said.

Lee Harsy, director of guidance at Victor J. Andrew High School in Tinley Park, said his students also choose state schools due to cost and closeness.

Of the 482 students who graduated from Andrew this spring, 37 will attend U of I and 22 are NIU-bound, he said.

Students are choosing NIU because they “see it as a strong academic program at a relatively reasonable price,” Harsy said.

Since most of the students at Andrew are middle class, financial considerations are an important factor in college choice, he said.

Joseph Bonini, a 1991 graduate of Marian Catholic in Chicago Heights, will be entering NIU as a pre-engineering major in the fall, even though Purdue University in Indiana was his first choice. His parents, Rosalie and Geo Bonini, said his Chick Evans scholarship is the reason he will be attending NIU.

Transfer student Ted Francis of Elgin will be attending NIU in the fall as a pre-engineering major. He said he chose NIU because his finances are causing him to commute.