Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois
- Private nonprofit
- City
- 9,201 undergrads
- Admit rate
- 8%Source: College Scorecard
- Average net price
- $34,420per year, after grantsSource: College Scorecard
- Graduation rate
- 96%within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $104,25510 years after startingSource: College Scorecard
What's special
Northwestern runs on quarters, not semesters: three 10-week terms (fall, winter and spring) plus a summer term.
Getting in
- Admit rate
- 8%About 1 in 13 applicants get in.Source: College Scorecard
- Test policy
- Test-optionalScores are considered if you send them, but not required.Source: College Scorecard
- SAT (middle 50%)
- 1510–1570Reading + math, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
- ACT (middle 50%)
- 33–35Composite, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
From Northwestern University's own report
These numbers come from the school's Common Data Set for 2024–25, a standard report colleges publish about their applicants and first-year students. Open the report.
- Admit rate in this report
- 8%3,806 admitted of 49,474 first-year applicants
- Early decision admit rate
- 23%1,186 admitted of 5,154. Early decision is binding: you commit to attend if admitted.
- SAT, middle 50%
- 1510–156046% of first-years sent SAT scores
- ACT, middle 50%
- 34–3523% of first-years sent ACT scores
Early applicants often include recruited athletes and students who knew this was their first choice, so a higher early rate doesn't mean applying early raises any one student's odds by that much.
What the admissions office says it weighs
Very important
- GPA
- Class rank
- Essay
- Recommendations
- Activities
- A talent or ability
- Character and personal qualities
Considered
- Test scores
- Interview
- Being first in your family to go to college
- Family who went there (legacy)
- Where you live
- Volunteer work
- Work experience
- Showing interest in the school
Not considered
- Living in the state
Where you'd stand
Enter your numbers to see where they'd fall among Northwestern University's first-year students. This isn't a prediction: it shows how you compare with students who enrolled, using the sources linked below.
Leave out anything you don't have. Your numbers stay in this browser and fill in on other school pages. See my list
Sources: Northwestern University Common Data Set 2024–25. Test ranges describe enrolled students who sent scores.
What it really costs
Most families pay less than the sticker price. Net price is what's left after grants and scholarships.
- Average net price
- $34,420full-time first-years who got grant aidSource: College Scorecard
- Total cost of attendance
- $94,854sticker price incl. housing, per yearSource: College Scorecard
- Tuition
- $70,589Source: College Scorecard
After you enroll
- Graduation rate
- 96%first-time, full-time students finishing within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Came back for year two
- 98%full-time first-year studentsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $104,25510 years after starting, for students who got federal aidSource: College Scorecard
- Median debt at graduation
- $17,017federal loans, students who finishedSource: College Scorecard
Students
- Undergraduates
- 9,201Source: College Scorecard
- Receive Pell grants
- 21%a sign of economic diversitySource: College Scorecard
- First-generation students
- 15%parents didn't go beyond high schoolSource: College Scorecard
Similar schools
Similar, and easier to get into
- Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL — admits 82%
- Villanova University Villanova, PA — admits 27%
- DePaul University Chicago, IL — admits 76%
- Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX — admits 44%
Also worth a look
- Georgetown University Washington, DC — admits 13%
- Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA — admits 12%
- Cornell University Ithaca, NY — admits 9%
- University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA — admits 5%
- Tufts University Medford, MA — admits 11%
- Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA — admits 16%
Where these numbers come from
Every number on this page comes from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard page for Northwestern University, which draws on what the school reports to the federal government and on federal student aid and tax records. We last pulled the data on November 4, 2026. Different measures cover different years; here's how each one works.
Spot something wrong? Report a data error.