Basic Information
Type
Private
Geographical Reach
National
Location
Evanston, IL
Population
7,500,000
Website
http://www.northwestern.edu/
Weather
Comfortable Days
105 (50%)
Sunshine Hours
2,508 (33%)
Days Without Precipitation
241 (38%)
Demographics
Total Undergraduates
9,168
Men / Women
46% / 54%
From State
19%
From Region
4%
Athletes
5.8%
Racial/Ethnic
White
30%
Asian
21%
Hispanic
16%
International
12%
Black
8%
Mixed
8%
Native American
0%
Men in the Entering Class
Men
Entering Class by Race & Ethnicity
Native
Asian
Black
Hispanic
White
International
Share of the full-time first-time degree-seeking cohort. Groups IPEDS reports separately — two or more races, and race unknown — are left out, so the lines don't sum to 100%.
Enrolled Undergraduates by Race & Ethnicity
Native
Asian
Black
Hispanic
White
International
Share of all full-time degree-seeking undergraduates, not just the entering class. Same excluded groups as above.
IPEDS Admissions (2011–2024), Graduation Rates (2011–2024) and 12-month Enrollment (2020–2025) surveys. Years a college didn't file leave a gap in the line.
Schools & Majors
| ⇅ | Trends | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bienen School of Music | 82 | 56% / 44% | 5% | $48,588 | 5 | 97% | |
| Jazz/Jazz Studies | 4 +1 | 100% / 0% | 0% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Keyboard Instruments | 6 — | 33% / 67% | 17% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Music | 11 +12 | 55% / 45% | 0% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Music Composition | 5 +1 | 60% / 40% | 20% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Music Education | 6 — | 83% / 17% | 0% | $57,874 | 15 | — | |
| Music Performance | 18 +4 | 67% / 33% | 6% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Musicology and Ethnomusicology | 1 +1 | 100% / 0% | 0% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Stringed Instruments | 19 — | 42% / 58% | 5% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% | |
| Voice and Opera | 12 — | 42% / 58% | 0% | $47,855 | 4 | 97% |
| ⇅ | Trends | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science | 342 | 58% / 42% | 17% | $118,019 | 98 | 96% | |
| Biomedical Engineering | 56 — | 32% / 68% | 9% | $128,551 | 99 | 94% | |
| Chemical Engineering | 24 — | 67% / 33% | 8% | $118,895 | 98 | 97% | |
| Civil and Environmental Engineering | 25 — | 44% / 56% | 4% | $99,281 | 90 | — | |
| Computer Engineering | 26 — | 92% / 8% | 27% | $137,434 | 99 | 96% | |
| Electrical Engineering | 14 — | 79% / 21% | 21% | $133,997 | 99 | — | |
| Engineering | 1 — | 0% / 100% | 100% | $106,601 | 94 | — | |
| Environmental Engineering | 5 — | 20% / 80% | 0% | $97,409 | 89 | — | |
| Industrial Engineering | 70 — | 59% / 41% | 33% | $135,860 | 99 | 100% | |
| Manufacturing and Design Engineering | 20 — | 50% / 50% | 20% | $94,853 | 87 | 95% | |
| Materials Engineering | 12 — | 67% / 33% | 8% | $100,517 | 91 | — | |
| Mechanical Engineering | 89 — | 66% / 34% | 12% | $103,057 | 93 | 96% | |
| Materials Science | — — | — | — | $122,954 | 98 | — |
| ⇅ | Trends | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications | 189 | 25% / 75% | 6% | $50,393 | 6 | 95% | |
| Journalism | 189 — | 25% / 75% | 6% | $50,393 | 6 | 95% |
| ⇅ | Trends | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| School of Communication | 289 | 29% / 71% | 7% | $59,623 | 19 | 97% | |
| Communication Sciences and Disorders | 17 — | 6% / 94% | 12% | $69,687 | 48 | 97% | |
| Communication | 2 — | 50% / 50% | 0% | — | — | — | |
| Communication Studies | 69 — | 25% / 75% | 10% | $89,184 | 83 | 94% | |
| Dance | 5 — | 0% / 100% | 0% | $47,567 | 4 | — | |
| Performance Studies | 107 — | 34% / 66% | 2% | $47,204 | 4 | 100% | |
| Radio, Television, and Film | 89 — | 34% / 66% | 10% | $50,393 | 6 | 95% |
| ⇅ | Trends | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| School of Education and Social Policy | 135 | 33% / 67% | 6% | $76,822 | 65 | 97% | |
| Learning and Organizational Change | 6 — | 33% / 67% | 0% | $105,453 | 94 | 92% | |
| Organizational Leadership | 4 — | 50% / 50% | 0% | — | — | — | |
| Human Development and Social Policy | 21 — | 10% / 90% | 10% | $69,246 | 47 | — | |
| Public Policy Analysis | 35 — | 20% / 80% | 6% | $61,538 | 24 | 96% | |
| Social Policy | 61 — | 49% / 51% | 7% | $87,159 | 81 | 98% | |
| Learning Sciences | 6 — | 0% / 100% | 0% | $63,252 | 29 | — | |
| Secondary Education and Teaching | 2 — | 100% / 0% | 0% | $63,412 | 30 | — |
| ⇅ | Trends | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences | 1,394 | 47% / 53% | 10% | $103,079 | 93 | 95% | |
| Computer Science | 137 — | 72% / 28% | 20% | $154,432 | 100 | 90% | |
| Computer and Information Sciences | 3 — | 67% / 33% | 0% | $176,485 | 100 | — | |
| Data Science | 51 +48 | 49% / 51% | 12% | $138,864 | 99 | — | |
| Data Science and Society | 123 +18 | 59% / 41% | 12% | $158,713 | 100 | 98% | |
| Applied Mathematics | 19 — | 74% / 26% | 16% | $144,423 | 100 | 100% | |
| Chemistry | 20 +5 | 45% / 55% | 20% | $160,737 | 100 | 95% | |
| Earth and Planetary Sciences | 4 +2 | 50% / 50% | 25% | $75,454 | 63 | — | |
| Mathematics | 29 +31 | 83% / 17% | 21% | $118,411 | 98 | 92% | |
| Physics and Astronomy | 14 +6 | 57% / 43% | 29% | $102,048 | 92 | — | |
| Statistics | 19 +14 | 37% / 63% | 11% | $119,121 | 98 | 100% | |
| Biological Sciences | 131 +28 | 31% / 69% | 1% | $75,630 | 63 | 92% | |
| Neuroscience | 117 +22 | 27% / 73% | 3% | $52,925 | 8 | 100% | |
| Environmental Sciences | 21 +6 | 29% / 71% | 5% | $61,296 | 24 | — | |
| Economics | — — | — | — | $124,571 | 99 | 94% | |
| Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences | 277 +109 | 61% / 39% | 15% | $124,571 | 99 | 94% | |
| African-American Studies | 5 — | 0% / 100% | 0% | $57,722 | 15 | 100% | |
| American Studies | 6 +8 | 33% / 67% | 0% | $59,212 | 18 | — | |
| Anthropology | 9 +7 | 44% / 56% | 0% | $47,743 | 4 | 100% | |
| Asian American Studies | 2 +3 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $57,722 | 15 | 100% | |
| Classical Languages | 2 +2 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $68,953 | 46 | — | |
| Cognitive Science | 30 +21 | 20% / 80% | 3% | $83,326 | 76 | 94% | |
| Comparative Literature | 2 +2 | 50% / 50% | 0% | $61,704 | 25 | — | |
| Creative Writing | 2 — | 0% / 100% | 0% | $61,668 | 25 | — | |
| East Asian Languages | 4 +3 | 25% / 75% | 0% | — | — | — | |
| English | 24 +24 | 25% / 75% | 12% | $60,668 | 22 | 100% | |
| Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies | 2 +3 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $57,722 | 15 | 100% | |
| French | 1 +3 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $68,496 | 45 | — | |
| German | — +1 | — | — | $69,643 | 48 | — | |
| History | 39 +34 | 59% / 41% | 5% | $69,685 | 48 | 95% | |
| Humanities/Humanistic Studies | — — | — | — | $90,649 | 84 | 100% | |
| Integrated Science | 5 +4 | 100% / 0% | 40% | $91,207 | 85 | — | |
| Jewish/Judaic Studies | 1 +1 | 0% / 100% | 0% | — | — | — | |
| Latina and Latino Studies | 2 +6 | 100% / 0% | 0% | $57,722 | 15 | 100% | |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies | 2 — | 100% / 0% | 0% | $90,649 | 84 | 100% | |
| Linguistics | 5 +6 | 80% / 20% | 40% | $68,884 | 46 | — | |
| Near and Middle Eastern Studies | 1 +2 | 100% / 0% | 0% | $58,682 | 17 | — | |
| Philosophy | 16 +5 | 56% / 44% | 19% | $71,476 | 53 | — | |
| Political Science | 89 +52 | 52% / 48% | 7% | $75,481 | 63 | 96% | |
| Psychology | 128 +72 | 20% / 80% | 6% | $70,650 | 51 | 96% | |
| Psychology | — — | — | — | $60,674 | 22 | — | |
| Religious Studies | 2 +2 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $64,356 | 32 | — | |
| Slavic Languages | 5 +3 | 40% / 60% | 20% | $69,048 | 47 | — | |
| Social Sciences | 14 — | 7% / 93% | 0% | $60,826 | 22 | — | |
| Sociology | 16 +14 | 25% / 75% | 12% | $57,245 | 14 | 95% | |
| Spanish | 3 +2 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $68,200 | 44 | — | |
| Art History | 2 +3 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $48,898 | 5 | — | |
| Art Theory and Practice | 3 +5 | 0% / 100% | 33% | $49,057 | 5 | — | |
| Legal Studies | 7 +18 | 29% / 71% | 0% | $60,639 | 22 | — |
Financial
Tuition & Fees
$73,272
ROI Percentile
86th
Retention & Graduation
Full-Time Retention
98%
4-Year Graduation Rate
83%
6-Year Graduation Rate
95%
Transfer-Out Rate
0%
Six-Year Graduation Rate
Graduated
Students finishing within 150% of normal time. Each year labels the cohort that entered six years earlier — 2024 tracks the class that started in 2018.
Six-Year Graduation Rate by Gender
Men
Women
IPEDS reports the cohort as men and women only.
Six-Year Graduation Rate by Race & Ethnicity
Asian
Black
Hispanic
White
International
Each group's completers over its own share of the entering cohort. Groups making up less than 2% of everyone this college graduated over the period are left off — their rates swing on a handful of students and read as noise.
IPEDS Graduation Rates survey, 2011–2024. Years a college didn't file leave a gap in the line.
Earnings by Major Category
Each major category's degree-weighted estimated median 5-year earnings at this college, expressed as a z-score against the national degree-weighted distribution for that category. 0 is the national average. The shaded band between +1.28 and −1.28 marks the central 80% of the national distribution (10th–90th percentile).
Academics
| ⇅ | % | Degrees | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | ROI | Employment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32.7% | 794 | 31% / 69% | 7% | $68,031 | 44 | 96% | ||
| Engineering | 14.1% | 342 | 58% / 42% | 17% | $118,020 | 98 | 96% | |
| Computer Science | 12.9% | 314 | 63% / 37% | 15% | $153,791 | 100 | 94% | |
| Arts | 11.8% | 288 | 39% / 61% | 6% | $48,621 | 5 | 97% | |
| Business & Economics | 11.8% | 287 | 60% / 40% | 15% | $124,166 | 99 | 94% | |
| Life & Natural Sciences | 10.2% | 248 | 29% / 71% | 2% | $64,918 | 34 | 96% | |
| Physical Sciences & Math | 4.3% | 105 | 61% / 39% | 19% | $127,490 | 99 | 96% | |
| Agriculture & Food Science | 0.9% | 21 | 29% / 71% | 5% | $61,296 | 24 | — | |
| Health Sciences | 0.7% | 17 | 6% / 94% | 12% | $69,687 | 48 | 97% | |
| Education | 0.3% | 8 | 25% / 75% | 0% | $63,292 | 29 | — | |
| Professional | 0.3% | 7 | 29% / 71% | 0% | $60,639 | 22 | — |
Research R1
| ⇅ | Research $ | Rank | Federal | Industry $ | PhDs | Rank | PhD students | Postdocs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health Sciences | $670M | #18 | 61% | $56.3M | 35 | #56 | 38 | 341 |
| Life & Natural Sciences | $231M | #22 | 64% | $3.5M | 70 | #34 | 631 | 190 |
| Engineering | $120M | #44 | 59% | $5.4M | 149 | #17 | 945 | 157 |
| Physical Sciences & Math | $115M | #27 | 52% | $4.4M | 85 | #32 | 543 | 259 |
| $32.9M | #68 | 30% | $0.2M | 135 | #30 | 345 | 53 | |
| Business & Economics | $24.9M | #19 | 21% | $0.1M | 40 | #15 | 208 | 3 |
| Computer Science | $14.9M | #63 | 51% | $0.2M | 18 | #55 | 176 | 8 |
| Education | $14.7M | #40 | 17% | $0 | 4 | #390 | — | — |
| Agriculture & Food Science | $0 | #318 | — | $0 | — | — | — | — |
| Total | $1,226M | #27 | 59% | $70.1M | 536 | #34 | 2,886 | 1,011 |
Expenditure and funding source: NSF HERD, FY2024. Degrees: IPEDS completions, 2023–24. Students and postdocs: NSF Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates, fall 2024, which covers science, engineering and selected health fields only. An em dash means the source does not report the figure, which is not the same as zero.
Admissions
Uses Common App
Yes
Acceptance Rate
7%
Yield (Unbound)
36%
Early Decision 1
Nov 1
Regular Decision
Jan 3
Acceptance Rates
| In-State | Out-of-State | International | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Decision | 5% | 5% | 5% |
| Early Decision | 22% | 22% | 22% |
Acceptance & Yield
Acceptance
Yield
Applicants, Admitted & Enrolled
Applicants
Admitted
Enrolled
IPEDS Admissions survey, 2011–2024. Years a college didn't file leave a gap in the line.
Standardized Tests
Test Policy
optional
Submitted Test Scores
69%
SAT Range
1510
–
1570
SAT Math Range
770
–
800
SAT RW Range
740
–
770
SAT Composite
25th
75th
SAT Math
25th
75th
SAT Reading & Writing
25th
75th
Submitting a Test Score
Submitted
IPEDS Admissions survey, 2011–2024. Years a college didn't file leave a gap in the line. Test-score submission adds SAT and ACT submitters, capped at 100% — a student can send both.
Rankings
Academics
Future Patagonia Vest Owners
Top Investment Banking Feeders
Will Network for a Superday
Future Ambulance Chasers
Top Law School Feeders
Future SCOTUS Clerks
Can't Hide Behind Your GPA
SAT-required, Highest Medians
Above Average in High School is Not Enough
College Costs
We Marked It Up Just to Put It on Sale
Highest List Price
Luxury Good
Prestige
Grandma Eyebrow Raisers
Easy Brags for the Prestigious-Conscious
Is Everyone an Ivy+ Now?
Someone Like Me
Places, Please!
Theater Participation
Theater Kid Generation
My Tribe
Call Your Mother!
Most Jewish
Significant Community
Engineering
Pre-Med Hidding in Plain Sight
Biomedical Engineering
Cutting Edge
It's Not About Molecules, It's About Pipes
Chemical Engineering
Polymer Whisperers & Battery Bros
Playing House
Civil Engineering
Bridge Builders
Resistance Is Futile
Computer Engineering
O(1) Touch Grass (Theoretically Computable)
Resistance Is Not Futile
Electrical Engineering
Ohm My God
Making Spreadsheets Go Brrrr
Industrial Engineering
The Suits
Is It a Solid? Is It a Liquid? Yes.
Materials Engineering
Atomic Architects
WD-40 & Duct Tape
Mechanical Engineering & Robotics
Whiteboard-preferred
Computer Science
Explaining That HTML is Not a Programming Language
Computer Science (A&S)
LeetCode Grinders
Physical Sciences & Math
Breaking Bad
Chemistry
Pre-Med Darwinian Thunderdome
Rocks and Whales
Earth & Atmospheric Sciences
Fossil Hunters
The "I Understand Interstellar" Elite
Physics & Astronomy
The Heavyweight Builders (Applied Physics)
No Words Allowed
Pure Mathematics
Equation Elegance
Life & Natural Sciences
Pre-Med Reject Waiting Room
Biology
The Double Helix
Memorizing 206 Bones
Human Biology
The Cadaver Club
Lord of the Petri Dish
Microbiology & Immunology
Pathogen Punishers
Staring at a Gel Electrophoresis Until Our Eyes Bleed
Molecular Biology & Genomics
Sequencing Squad
Action Potentials
Neuroscience
Pre-Meds in Disguise
Agriculture & Food Science
Doomsday Prepping with Data
Environmental Science
Carbon Neutral
Health Sciences
Talk About a Career
Phonoaudiology
Voice Coaches Plus
Sweat Equity
Sports & Fitness
The Training Room
Business & Economics
PowerPoint Presentation Power Rankings
Business Administration
We Don't Actually Offer Undergrad Business
Pivot Tables & Missing Pallets
Business Analytics
Just-In-Time Jugglers
It's Basic Supply and Demand, Bro
Economics
The "Chicago Boys" Free Market Fan Club
Move Fast, Break Tuition
Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Future Founders
Wolf of Wall Street Prep
Finance
Wait, I Majored in Econ?
Tik-Tok Generation
Marketing
Brand Builders
Humanities & Social Sciences
I Think, Therefore I Major
Cognitive Science
High-End Hallucinators
Much Ado About Nothing
English, Literature & Writing
Bookworm Elite
Smashing the Patriarchy 101
Gender Studies
Discourse Disruptors
Model UN Generation
Government & Politics
Campaign Trail
Hindsight is 20/20 (And So is My Salary)
History & Archaeology
Primary Source Hunters
Nosy for a Living
Journalism
The "We Trained the Anchor You're Watching" Cartel
Professional Yapping
Media & Communication Studies
The "Our Alumni Control Your Feed" Mafia
The "Why Are We Here?" Support Group
Philosophy & Ethics
Late Night Debaters
I Want To Understand Myself
Psychology
Future Roommate Diagnosers
Decolonizing the Curriculum
Regional & Ethnic Studies
Cultural Cartographers
Everything is a Construct
Sociology & Anthropology
The Deconstructors
Grammar Police Academy
World Languages & Linguistics
Grammar Nerds
Education
Surviving PTA Karens
General Education
Classroom Ready
Show Your Work, Then Teach It
STEM Education
Math Whisperers
Arts
Explaining Splatters to Rich People
Art History & Management
Arts Admin Powerhouses
Lights, Camera, Tuition
Film
Hollywood Pipeline
Eight Hours of Scales
Music
Recital Royalty
Theatre Kid Generation
Performing Arts
Standing Ovation