Northwestern University is a private institution that was founded in 1851. The university has three campuses – the main one in Evanston, Illinois; one in nearby Chicago; and one in Doha, Qatar. The city of Evanston is located around 14 miles north of Chicago, on the shore of Lake Michigan. Tuition is the same for domestic and international students, and international undergraduate applicants are permitted to apply for need-based aid from Northwestern. International graduate students pursuing Master of Fine Arts and doctoral degrees can also receive institutional aid. University housing is available for both undergraduate and graduate students, and almost 70 percent of the undergraduate student body lives on campus.
The university has a dozen schools and colleges: arts and sciences; communication; education and social policy; engineering and applied science; journalism, media and integrated marketing communications; law; management; medicine; music; professional studies; a graduate school; and Northwestern University in Qatar. Northwestern follows a quarter-based academic calendar, and the primary language of instruction is English. A sampling of the university's many research centers includes the Northwestern University/Art Institute of Chicago Center for Scientific Studies in the Arts, the Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence and the Northwestern Center for Water Research. In a recent year, the university earned more than $650 million in sponsored research awards. The institution's Office of Undergraduate Research helps students take advantage of various research opportunities, such as the Summer Undergraduate Research Grants program, which supports students for eight weeks of full-time summer work under faculty supervision.
University Data
Total number of students
18,803
Number of international students
3,865
Total number of academic staff
1,450
Number of international staff
348
Number of undergraduate degrees awarded
2,145
Number of master's degrees awarded
4,326
Number of doctoral degrees awarded
945
Number of research only staff
1,300
Number of new undergraduate students
2,006
Number of new master's students
2,786
Number of new doctoral students
1,013
Rankings
Northwestern University is ranked #24 in Best Global Universities. Schools are ranked according to their performance across a set of widely accepted indicators of excellence. Read more about how we rank schools.