Northwestern vibe

[Anonymous]

DC (like many) is interested in an academically rigorous, mid-size school with some rah rah and a fun college town. Northwestern seems to fit the bill, and definitely had the reputation for having smart, balanced kids back in the stone ages when I went to school. I've heard that the vibe has changed, and it's now much more quirky, intense and less social than it used to be. We are visiting in a few weeks, but does anyone have a kid who is there and can speak to the current environment?

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

We visited and the kids seemed pretty normal. Evanston seemed kind of boring and suburban—it’s cute but basically all chain stores and fast casual chains. Chicago is pretty far.

My kid liked it and applied RD but I feel like it’s a long way to go for what it is.

[Anonymous]

yes, what is the latest at Northwestern? Are there any freshmen parents who can comment?

I think traditionally it was mainstream work-hard, play-hard but more recently has gotten very quirky and not-fun (no one goes to football games, grinds 24/7, super competitive with each other for any resources and the party scene has moved to U of Chicago, etc) but then I've heard that Northwestern corrected this a bit this past cycle and admitted more mainstream kids.

What is the word on the street from current parents, preferably those with freshmen?

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

There was a recent post about how a lot of freshman girls got shut out of sorority rush this year - which isn’t the norm. Maybe that means the school is attracting the more social Greek life type of student these days?

[Anonymous]

I have two kids there, including a freshman. Like any other school of a decent size (>8k undergrads), there will be all kinds of kids. There are the nerdy engineering kids, like my upperclassman who spends lots of time in the library and hangs out with a small group of close friends, there is the consulting crowd, the premed crowd, and the theater crowd, among others, with lots of mixing of groups. Both kids have friends in multiple different crowds. My freshman is an engineering major with a bunch of friends in theater - tons of parties, apparently. I would really hesitate to apply one type of vibe label. Both kids are having a great time. My sense is that the younger one, who overall has always been more social, attends more parties than the older one.

The sports are there, but not necessarily a huge focus. It'll be interesting to see if more attend the football games when the new stadium opens in October, though the temporary lakefront one looks pretty cool.

There is a greek scene, but my kids are not involved, so I don't have any observations on that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:yes, what is the latest at Northwestern? Are there any freshmen parents who can comment?

I think traditionally it was mainstream work-hard, play-hard but more recently has gotten very quirky and not-fun (no one goes to football games, grinds 24/7, super competitive with each other for any resources and the party scene has moved to U of Chicago, etc) but then I've heard that Northwestern corrected this a bit this past cycle and admitted more mainstream kids.

What is the word on the street from current parents, preferably those with freshmen?

Thank you!

PP with two kids there. My kids do not feel the environment is super competitive with each other for resources, not at all. Quite the opposite.

More generally, I wonder whether competitiveness is a bit in the eye of the beholder, depends on the kid.

[Anonymous]

There is some socializing with UChicago too. Last Friday night, there was a big gathering at a downtown club with sororities and fraternities from both Northwestern and UChicago. Plus there are a lot for HS friends spread out between these schools and they meet up downtown or go to parties at the other’s campuses. From what I hear from DC, the social scene expands.

[Anonymous]

I have a freshman there. There's a mix of students (which seems intentional by the university, given the diversity of its colleges): the quieter cerebral engineering library types, the theater kids, the music kids, and the out 3+ nights a week type.

My DC falls into the latter category. Having a blast (probably too much fun). In Greek life, which is growing (not shrinking) - for both boys and girls. We've visited in the fall for parents' weekend and are planning to again next month for something. Met a lot of freshmen dorm friends who seem like a nice mix of gregarious, social, well-adjusted kids, but noticeably a lot of private HS kids (at least from whom I met in the fall). Very outgoing group who attended almost all home football games last fall (and now attends most home basketball games).

But I imagine there's also an entirely different cohort there, too, that I didn't meet. Don't think you can generalize about an entire class of 1900 students? I think that's part of NU's magic: creating that special mix.

The business club scene is competitive, but no more than at other schools. And my DC made it into one "competitive" club, so who really knows.

So far, DC gives it a 9 out of 10 for freshman year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is some socializing with UChicago too. Last Friday night, there was a big gathering at a downtown club with sororities and fraternities from both Northwestern and UChicago. Plus there are a lot for HS friends spread out between these schools and they meet up downtown or go to parties at the other’s campuses. From what I hear from DC, the social scene expands.

Ha. Yes. My DC was there.

[Anonymous]

I have a very social upperclassman at Northwestern. Absolutely loves the school and has made great friends. Went to fraternity parties first and second years. Now goes to clubs or bars in Chicago, smaller house parties and gatherings, or out for dinner with friends.
Plenty of kids go to the football and basketball games. As others have said, it’s a pretty decent size school and you have kids of all types. Some go out and others don’t. But that’s true everywhere.

[Anonymous]

My Junior in college has a close friend there who definitely thinks the vast majority of the class is pretty nerdy. That said, she is social and has found her people, just feels that most people aren’t the type to go to parties. May still work for lots of kids, but very different than the school was a decade or two ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My Junior in college has a close friend there who definitely thinks the vast majority of the class is pretty nerdy. That said, she is social and has found her people, just feels that most people aren’t the type to go to parties. May still work for lots of kids, but very different than the school was a decade or two ago.

But do you have a kid there? I mean, that's why this "reporting" for any school is nonsense. My kid's friend told them xyz.....
Puleeze.

Why don't you tell us about your kid's experiences at their school instead?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My Junior in college has a close friend there who definitely thinks the vast majority of the class is pretty nerdy. That said, she is social and has found her people, just feels that most people aren’t the type to go to parties. May still work for lots of kids, but very different than the school was a decade or two ago.

But do you have a kid there? I mean, that's why this "reporting" for any school is nonsense. My kid's friend told them xyz.....
Puleeze.

Why don't you tell us about your kid's experiences at their school instead?

I actually think it’s more neutral. Parents are biased toward being boosters for the school. Kids also more likely to be honest with their peers. I have a younger kid going through this cycle and older sibling passed on info from close friends at the schools to which he was applying. I’ve also known the friends since middle school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:yes, what is the latest at Northwestern? Are there any freshmen parents who can comment?

I think traditionally it was mainstream work-hard, play-hard but more recently has gotten very quirky and not-fun (no one goes to football games, grinds 24/7, super competitive with each other for any resources and the party scene has moved to U of Chicago, etc) but then I've heard that Northwestern corrected this a bit this past cycle and admitted more mainstream kids.

What is the word on the street from current parents, preferably those with freshmen?

Thank you!

What does this even mean (bolded?)

Do you really think admissions officers are sitting around that giant conference table and saying things like, "You know, Joe, we've gotten too many weirdos in the last few years. Not good for the reputation. Let's look for more mainstream kids."

[Anonymous]

People see what they want to see. You think quirky us concerning, that’s all you’ll notice. You’re worried about everyone being unsociable you’ll notice every kid walking along or that grimaces with a gas pain.