College Campus Blog Report #3:

Last fall, I had the opportunity to visit Northwestern University located in Evanston, Illinois. While visiting this university, I had the chance to listen to an information session and also attended a campus tour. While on campus, I also had the opportunity to drive around and look at downtown Evanston. Here is my 3rd college campus blog report and all the information that I can tell you about Northwestern University.

Northwestern University:

Location: Evanston, Illinois— about 30 minutes outside of Chicago.

Weather In Evanston: Evanston has extremely cold winters as it is about 20-40 degrees every day with some snow. The summers in Evanston are warm and humid with temperatures ranging from the high 60’s to low 80’s.

Town Feel: While I was visiting Northwestern, I was able to drive around downtown Evanston and from what I could tell, it was very nice. Evanston has a population of about 75,000 and has a very cute downtown with many nice shops and restaurants. While I was there, we went down the main street which contained some brand name stores such as Whole Foods and Peet’s as well as some local restaurants. The Northwestern campus  basically makes up downtown Evanston and is only about a 5 minute walk away from the main street. Overall, Evanston Illinois has a great small town feel and has everything you would need on a day to day basis as well as a few small scale entertainment options. Also, if Evanston is not a big enough city for you, Chicago is close enough that you can go there and explore if you want.

Activities To Do In And Around Campus:

• Visit downtown Chicago- downtown Chicago is only about 30 minutes away from the Northwestern campus and while we were on our tour, our tour guides explained to us that there is a train near campus that provides easy access to Chicago and back. While in downtown Chicago, there are many museums that you can visit as well as many other amazing things to do. Chicago is one of the biggest cities in the United States and I am sure there is something for everyone to do there.
• Exploring Evanston- Although Evanston is a small town, there is still plenty to do  there. Evanston has many shops to visit as well as restaurants so spending your day there is very possible.
• Walking around Lake Michigan- Northwestern’s campus is located right on the shores of Lake Michigan and as a result, there is a lot to explore. Doing the winter in Evanston, it is way too cold to swim in the lake but you can still walk around the lake as there are many beautiful trails to use.
• Swimming and doing other activities in Lake Michigan- These types of activities are more reserved for summer time and can be a perfect way to cool off on a hot summer or spring day. during the summer, there are many people in the lake kayaking, canoeing, rowing or even swimming. Thus, this is a great activity to do if you are looking for something to do while you are on campus.
• Attend a Northwestern sports game- Northwestern is home to Division 1 sports so I am sure that there are many opportunities available to watch high quality college sports on campus.
• Attend a lecture or speaker series- Northwestern has a big lecture hall on campus and throughout the year they host many lectures and speaker series’. These events are open for all to attend and their main goal is to help educate students as well as the general public.
• Attend a play or concert- While Northwestern is a strong science school, they also have a strong arts program that hosts many events for all to attend throughout the year. On the Northwestern campus, there is a state of the art lecture hall and also  a few theaters which allow for these events to occur. Also, every spring in either May or June, the school hosts an all day music festival called Dillo Day which many students attend to celebrate the end of winter and the school year.

Northwestern University Size: 

• 8,321 undergraduate students
• 13,308 graduate students
• 21,629 total students
• 6:1 student faculty ratio
• Average class size—- 15 students

Admission Statistics (Class of 2023):

• 9% acceptance rate— This is higher than the overall acceptance rate of 8.5%
• Total # of applicants—40,595
• Total # of students accepted— 2,006
• Roughly 50% of the students accepted for the class of 2023 were accepted through early decision. This statistic tells me that if you want a better chance to get into Northwestern University, then you should apply early decision. But, if you are going to apply early decision, Northwestern should be your first choice school as if you are accepted you will be required to attend.

Interesting Facts About Northwestern University:

• Division 1 Sports- Northwestern is home to division 1 sports and was one of the founding members of the Big Ten conference.
• Northwestern is a top research school. Students at Northwestern get almost 800 million dollars each year in sponsored research and grants. The Northwestern campus itself has over 90 research centers available to conduct research in a variety of different fields.
• Northwestern is home to one of the top business schools in America– The Kellogg School of Management.
• Northwestern uses the quarter system which means that the year is divided into 10 week periods as oppose to semesters. The quarter system allows students to learn about a variety of topics as well as to study fields that are outside of their major and interesting to them.
• Northwestern has a strong study abroad program— roughly 50% of students participate in some form of study abroad while studying at Northwestern.
• Roughly 70% of undergraduates at Northwestern combine 2 or more fields of study.
• Each May or June, Northwestern hosts the largest student run 1 day music festival called Dillo Day.

My Overall Opinions On Northwestern University:

What I Like About Northwestern:

• The location- Northwestern University has, in my opinion, a great location as it is near a big city in Chicago but not too close that it has too much of a city feel to it. The fact that Northwestern is near Chicago allows for the school to utilize the resources and opportunities available in the city. I also love that the campus is located on the shores of lake Michigan as it provides for great views as well as great activities to do in the summer. Overall, the location for Northwestern could not be better.
•  I like that Northwestern is a strong science school but also well balanced. At Northwestern, they are plenty of research opportunities available to study in a variety of different fields and the school also has a very strong science program. But besides from being a strong research and science university, Northwestern is also strong in the arts and humanities making it a well rounded and balanced school. Some universities are just focused on one area of study and are not very well balanced but Northwestern is just the opposite which is very nice.
•  I like the layout of the Northwestern campus. Some colleges have campuses that are very spread out or that are split between 2 sides of a street. The Northwestern campus is just the opposite of that as it is centralized with most of the buildings in one place. The campus also has a central quad and meeting area which makes it very easy for students to connect and hang out with each other. While this layout is not for everyone, I prefer it as it makes it easier to get around to different places efficiently.
• I like that Northwestern has small class sizes and a 6:1 student to faculty ratio. The average class size at Northwestern is 15 students which makes it really easy to get personalized attention and help. Also, with smaller class sizes, you feel like your voice is heard and that your opinions matter. Even though Northwestern is a middle to large size university, they still pride themselves in small class sizes and a low student to faculty ratio which allows students to feel important.

What I dislike About Northwestern:

• The weather- Chicago and the surrounding areas have 4 distinct seasons throughout the year with very cold winters and somewhat hot, muggy summers. while there is nothing that the university itself can do to fix the weather, it is a downside to going there and is something that you would have to take into account if you wanted to attend Northwestern.
• The size of Evanston- Although Evanston is a nice small town with everything you would need as a college student, I wish it was a tiny bit bigger and had a bit more going on. But, I guess Northwestern is close enough to Chicago that the size of the city the campus is in does not really matter that much.
• The quarter system- At Northwestern, they use a quarter system as oppose to semesters. What this means is that the year is divided into 10 week periods as opposed to just splitting the year in half. The quarter system does allow for students to switch classes more often and learn about a wider variety of topics which could be beneficial for some. Even though it is not that big of a deal,  I prefer the semester system as you can learn a lot of information during only 1 semester and the year is divided more evenly.

My Final Thoughts On Northwestern:

Overall, Northwestern is a great school in a great location. Before touring this school, I did not know very much about it. But, after my tour, I left with a ton of great information about Northwestern as well as a better understanding of how great a school it is. I really appreciate how the school is well balanced academically and also has other aspects to it such as division 1 sports and clubs. I highly recommend visiting Northwestern University if you get the chance as the campus is in a beautiful location with a view of Chicago and has so many great academic programs to offer. Thank you for reading my third college campus blog report!