A Glimpse at Northwestern University

In one week, the Chicago cohort will board a plane and head across the country to explore, learn and bring back knowledge about various colleges and college experiences. One of the schools that we will be visiting is Northwestern University. I was interested in researching Northwestern University because I didn't know much about it other than that it was a college near Chicago. Researching the university, I discovered a lot of information on its history, academics, and culture.

 

An aerial view of the Northwestern campus, located next to Lake Michigan

Northwestern's mascot is Willie the Wildcat

Northwestern University is a private university located in Evanston, Illinois on the shore of Lake Michigan. It is just 12 miles north of Chicago. The school was founded in 1851, and though it started off small, Northwestern is now a high ranking school with many departments 12 different schools and colleges in a variety of areas. Notably, the graduate program at the Kellogg School of Management is often in the top five business schools in the country. If I were to attend Northwestern University, I think I would probably enroll in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, which is the oldest and largest school for undergraduates. Research is also a significant focus at Northwestern University. While exploring the research department's website, I read an interesting article on a research study that suggests that our genes affect how quickly we show laughter or smiles.

Northwestern also has many interesting, successful alumni, including Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, television host Seth Meyers, and New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi. Additionally, Northwestern has 2 Nobel Prize winners, Professor John Pople for Chemistry (1998) and Professor Dale Mortensen for Economics (2008). 

An exhibit at the Block Museum of Art

I was excited to learn more about the culture at Northwestern University. I was glad to see that they have programs for music, theater and dance, as well as visual arts. Specifically, Northwestern includes the Block Museum of Art, which seems like an inventive, diverse art museum. Researching the athletics at Northwestern was fun, because they offer many interesting club sports such as archery, quidditch, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, along with more traditional sports programs as well. 

Weber Arch: the symbolic entrance to Northwestern University

In reading about annual events, I learned that Northwestern holds a weekly welcome for incoming students, basically their orientation. Additionally, new students are given a Peer Adviser, who will help guide them throughout their first year at Northwestern. I thought this was a really nice feature for new students that would help prevent confusion or adjusting to life at Northwestern. I enjoyed reading about special events and aspects specific to Northwestern. For example, Northwestern has an arch that is the symbolic entrance to the university, and the "March Through the Arch" is an event held to welcome new students to campus. Northwestern students also hold an annual Dance Marathon to raise money for the support of causes and charities.

Overall, Northwestern seems like a quality university with many typical aspects of college as well as some of its own special traits. Although I learned a lot just from reading about the school, I'm excited to actually get to tour Northwestern because that will make the school seem more real, instead of just words and descriptions. I think that being on campus and seeing Northwestern firsthand will give me the missing information I need to decide if I would consider applying there or not.