# Northwestern University
**Northwestern University** is a private research university in [Evanston, Illinois](https://www.edgepedia.org/evanston-illinois), founded in 1851 and organized today into 12 schools and colleges across campuses in Evanston, Chicago, and Doha, Qatar.[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) • [2](https://www.northwestern.edu/nu150/history/timeline.html) It enrolls about 21,000 students with more than 3,300 full-time faculty members and ranks among the top ten national universities in [U.S. News & World Report](https://www.edgepedia.org/u-s-news-and-world-report).[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) • [3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Founded | Act of Incorporation approved by the Illinois legislature on January 28, 1851; founders first met May 31, 1850 in Chicago[2](https://www.northwestern.edu/nu150/history/timeline.html) |
| Campuses | Three campuses, Evanston, Chicago, and Doha, Qatar, plus sites in San Francisco, New York City, Washington, DC, and Miami[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) • [4](https://www.northwestern.edu/global/) |
| Size | 21,000 total enrolled students; 3,300+ full-time faculty; 12 schools and colleges[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) |
| Admissions | 7.1% acceptance rate; 6:1 student-to-faculty ratio[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) |
| Endowment | $15.3 billion in total endowment[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) |
| Rankings | #9 national university, #2 education school, #4 business school, #9 law school (U.S. News, as of September 2026)[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) |
| Athletics | Founding member of the Big Ten Conference; 19 intercollegiate athletic teams[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) • [1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) |
## History
On May 31, 1850, nine Chicagoans met in a law office above a hardware store at 69 West Lake Street and resolved to establish a university under the patronage of the Methodist Episcopal Church, to serve the [Northwest Territory](https://www.edgepedia.org/northwest-territory).[2](https://www.northwestern.edu/nu150/history/timeline.html) • [5](https://www.northwestern.edu/govrelations/chicago/northwestern-in-chicago/people-history.html) The founders, including Grant Goodrich, John Evans, and Orrington Lunt, had limited funds, no land, and little experience in higher education.[6](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/history/) The Illinois legislature approved the Act of Incorporation on January 28, 1851, granting 36 trustees the power to organize a faculty, adopt by-laws, and grant degrees.[2](https://www.northwestern.edu/nu150/history/timeline.html)
**The Evanston site.** The founders first bought sixteen lots at LaSalle and Jackson Streets in Chicago as an intended campus, but in 1853 they instead purchased a 379-acre tract on the shore of [Lake Michigan](https://www.edgepedia.org/lake-michigan) 12 miles north of Chicago, on a planned stop of the new Chicago and Milwaukee Railroad in Ridgeville, now Evanston.[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) • [5](https://www.northwestern.edu/govrelations/chicago/northwestern-in-chicago/people-history.html) The Chicago property was leased out and remained an income source for the university until it was sold in the 1990s.[5](https://www.northwestern.edu/govrelations/chicago/northwestern-in-chicago/people-history.html) University Hall, today's oldest campus building, was completed in 1869 after the Civil War years.[6](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/history/)
## Schools and academics
Listed chronologically by when they were established, Northwestern's academic units are the Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences (1851), the Feinberg School of Medicine (1859), the Pritzker School of Law (1859), the School of Communication (1878), the Bienen School of Music (1895), the [Kellogg School of Management](https://www.edgepedia.org/kellogg-school-of-management) (1908), the McCormick School of Engineering & Applied Science (1909), the Graduate School (1910), the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications (1921), the School of Education & Social Policy (1926), the School of Professional Studies (1933), and Northwestern University in Qatar (2008).[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) Undergraduates apply directly to one of six undergraduate schools, which use the same admission review criteria, and can choose from more than 100 majors and minors.[7](https://admissions.northwestern.edu/apply/advice/academic-path.html) • [8](https://www.northwestern.edu/admissions/) About 75% of undergraduates combine two or more areas of study.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
According to its own description, the school is a comprehensive research university with interdisciplinary ties spanning several schools; among top-10 national universities, it is one of just three that also place within the top 20 in four graduate school rankings.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
## Research and innovation
Northwestern is home to more than 90 school-based centers and 20 University research centers, with research spanning neuroscience, nanotechnology, biotechnology, and drug discovery.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) Its innovation record includes $2.6 billion in revenue from patents and intellectual property licensing, more than 10 million patients impacted by Northwestern therapeutics, and over 100 innovation-based courses taught each year.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) Clinical affiliates include Northwestern Memorial Hospital, ranked the #1 hospital in Illinois, the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, ranked the #1 rehabilitation hospital, and [Lurie Children's Hospital](https://www.edgepedia.org/lurie-childrens-hospital), ranked the #1 children's hospital in Illinois.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
## Students and financial aid
The student body includes more than 9,000 undergraduates and more than 14,000 graduate students; more than 96% of the Class of 2025 were employed, pursuing further education, or in service within six months of graduation.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) About 25% of full-time students are international, and roughly half of Northwestern students study abroad.[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) The university's global footprint includes 6,500 international students and scholars and 90 international partners in more than 40 countries.[4](https://www.northwestern.edu/global/)
**Financial aid.** Northwestern meets 100% of every undergraduate student's demonstrated financial need and awarded more than $250 million in scholarships in 2025–26.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) Most students whose families earn less than $70,000 per year attend at no cost, and most students from families earning less than $150,000 per year attend tuition-free.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
## Leadership and recent pressures
The university is governed by a Board of Trustees, led by a president and provost.[1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) Michael Schill, the 17th president, was named in August 2022 and took office that September; under him Northwestern climbed to [No. 6](https://www.edgepedia.org/no-6) in the U.S. News national rankings, the highest in its history.[9](https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/09/president-michael-schill-announces-resignation) Schill resigned in September 2025 after a tenure marked by the freeze of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding by the Trump administration and criticism from House Republicans over the university's response to campus protests; the funding freeze contributed to layoffs of around 200 people over the summer of 2025.[10](https://apnews.com/article/e2c8cb4042f8594c3c5b733730e32342) Henry S. Bienen, president from 1995 to 2009, returned as interim president.[11](https://www.northwestern.edu/leadership-notes/2026/a-financial-update.html) In 2026, Mung Chiang, then president of [Purdue University](https://www.edgepedia.org/purdue-university), was named Northwestern's next president.[12](https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2026/05/mung-chiang-named-next-president-of-northwestern?fj=1)
The endowment payout supported 22% of operating revenue, and after the federal research funding freeze was resolved early in fiscal year 2026, the university's leadership reported that finances had stabilized, with a 2.7% salary increase pool for fiscal year 2027 and compensation spending budgeted to rise $50 million over the FY 2026 budget.[13](https://www.northwestern.edu/financial-operations/annual-financial-reports/2025-financial-report.pdf) • [11](https://www.northwestern.edu/leadership-notes/2026/a-financial-update.html)
## Athletics and traditions
Northwestern is a founding member of the [Big Ten Conference](https://www.edgepedia.org/big-ten-conference) and fields 19 intercollegiate athletic teams.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) • [1](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/) It is tied for the top NCAA overall graduation success rate (99%) among Football Bowl Subdivision schools.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) Recent team results include the 2025 NCAA field hockey and women's golf national championships and eight NCAA women's lacrosse titles since 2005.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html) Student traditions include Dance Marathon, which has raised $23 million since 1975, and the Waa-Mu Show, an original student-written musical nearly 100 years old.[6](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/history/)
## Notable alumni
Alumni include television hosts [Stephen Colbert](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-colbert) and [Seth Meyers](https://www.edgepedia.org/seth-meyers), actress [Julia Louis-Dreyfus](https://www.edgepedia.org/julia-louis-dreyfus), authors Gillian Flynn (*Gone Girl*) and George R.R. Martin (*A Game of Thrones*), Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, and former chief judge of the Northern District of Illinois Rubén Castillo.[3](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
## References
1. [About: Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/)
2. [Northwestern University Sesquicentennial: Historical Timeline](https://www.northwestern.edu/nu150/history/timeline.html)
3. [Facts: Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/facts.html)
4. [Global - Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/global/)
5. [History: Government Relations - Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/govrelations/chicago/northwestern-in-chicago/people-history.html)
6. [History and Traditions: Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/about/history/)
7. [Your Academic Path: Undergraduate Admissions - Northwestern University](https://admissions.northwestern.edu/apply/advice/academic-path.html)
8. [Admissions: Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/admissions/)
9. [President Michael Schill announces resignation - Northwestern Now](https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/09/president-michael-schill-announces-resignation)
10. [Northwestern University president says he will resign following tenure marked by White House tension, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/e2c8cb4042f8594c3c5b733730e32342)
11. [A Financial Update: Leadership Notes - Northwestern University](https://www.northwestern.edu/leadership-notes/2026/a-financial-update.html)
12. [Mung Chiang named next president of Northwestern - Northwestern Now](https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2026/05/mung-chiang-named-next-president-of-northwestern?fj=1)
13. [Report of the Chief Financial Officer, 2025 Financial Report](https://www.northwestern.edu/financial-operations/annual-financial-reports/2025-financial-report.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Education and knowledge institutions › Higher education › Universities and colleges in the Americas › Universities in the Midwestern United States › Private universities and colleges*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license