Northwestern University Top Questions

Purple pride is huge. we always lose but we're always proud anyways. Plus we have some of the best, most pretentious cheers... all meant jokingly of course. Evanston's nice. but everything closes by 8 except BK and Kafein. Chicago's only an hour or so away by public transportation though.

The best thing about Northwestern is it's proximity to Chicago. Sure, Evanston is a nice town. But there's no Midwestern city quite like Chicago. You may feel like Northwestern is a large school, but you will constantly run into people you know when you go out or eat in the dining hall or whatever. Go check out Kafein, a little coffee shop in Evanston. It's the place to go if you're tired of chains like Starbucks. Good food, nice staff, cozy atmosphere. Great place to study. My friends at other schools told me that once I was in college, I would get to be a total slob and wear whatever I wanted. Definitely not true at Northwestern. Girls wear heels and nice dresses even when they're just going to class. When I tell people I'm going to Northwestern, they either are really, really impressed or have no idea what school I'm talking about.

The best thing about NU is that, for the most part, the students are smart but unpretentious. Everyone cares about their grades, but they're laid-back and have a sense of humor about it. It's not like Harvard, where it's cut-throat and people sacrifice their social lives for their GPAs. People are really involved, and they make fun of themselves for being dorks. That's good. I'd change the housing available for sophomores who want to stay on campus but don't want to join a frat or sorority. My roommate and I basically got the last room in Bobb, which was lucky, but we were nervous about the lottery. It's like being punished for not being Panhellenic. School size is just right. I wouldn't want to go to a small school like Davidson. The school is big enough that I still meet new people every quarter, but small enough that I run into my friends every day. I'm from Florida, so a lot of people didn't know what Northwestern was when I told them I was going there. Someone even said, "I thought you were going to a smart school." But people who know what it is usually say, "Good for you" like they're all impressed. People who know what NU is, they think you're smart if you go there. I spend most of my time on the 2nd floor of McTrib (the McCormick Tribune Center) editing for North By Northwestern. I start editing at 6, Sunday - Thursday, and usually am there until 2 in the morning. I've kind of stopped doing my other homework. I spend a lot of time at Cafe Ambrosia on Orrington. And of course I hang out and sleep in Bobb. It's the best combination of college-town-but-not. All of my friends go to UF in Gainesville, FL, and it's too much of a college town. Every business is named Gater something, and it's just such a bubble. I would hate that. Evanston caters to the NU community with Wildcard discounts and fun coffee shops, but it isn't intended exclusively for students. I like seeing residents and their kids walking around. And I know Evanston's supposed to hate us, but I've never really felt any of that. The administration is pissing me off because they keep trying to get my friends' frat kicked off campus. Why? They're not doing anything that students aren't doing elsewhere anyway. College students drink. They party. Get over it. The biggest recent controversy? Dean Lavine possibly fabricating quotes. The provost said all was good, but come on. At NBN we're getting the 29 students on record, and no one said the quote. Plus, it's a quote that clearly supports his IMC/Medill agenda. So I don't think he should be pardoned so quickly. If I did that in one of Lavine's classes (not that he teaches classes), he'd give me a Medill F. Hell, he'd just give me an F. I don't know about school pride. No athletic pride. But I mean, people who go here often love it. I'm proud to say I go here, anyway. The unusual thing about NU is how preprofessional it is. So many people are on the fast-track to jobs and stuff. Like, journalism, theater, SESP, engineering - students have an unusual sense of their life directions. Motivated kids. I'll always remember when my freshman floor did a secret santa where we dressed up like the person we were giving the gift to. It was a hilarious way to reveal - especially since I was dressing up like the resident Catholic/"slut." Frequent student complains: Lack of a dating scene, lack of good housing, student center out of the way, dangerous sidewalks in the winter, too much construction, Medill classes fucking suck, Evanston hostile, overpriced meal plans, the Daily sucks... etc.

I guess the best thing about Northwestern is the academics--in the history department at least (where I have had many classes as a major) there are so many wonderful lecturers and courses, and really I've enjoyed most of my classes here at NU, even though they are lots of work. But I also love the school's gorgeous campus (though it was more gorgeous before there was so much inconvenient construction obstructing things and cutting off convenient pathways!), esp. how it's on the lake (which is so beautiful in the spring and fall, with views of Chicago across the lake and everything!), which I've grown to really love while here, and how it's a contained, real campus, yet not in the middle of nowhere--it's next to Evanston, an urban area with pretty much all I could want (I don't drink)--movie theater with mainstream and artsy films, restaurants and food chains, shops (including a Barnes and Noble AND a Borders!), a library, etc. Then on top of this there's a world-class city accessible with public transportation in an hour or so! And I like the residential college system (special themed dorms with more of an established community and close ties to certain faculty members, whom you socialize with outside of the classroom) and variety of dining halls and options on campus as well. Basically almost everything about NU (except the weather!) is just right for me, and I'm definitely glad I came here--it was the right choice! I spend most of my time on "South Campus," the southern portion of the campus, where most of my classes are, as well as my dorm, the library, etc. I think there is a lot of school pride, very evident at certain football games for example, when people turn out even though our team sucks. When I tell people I go to Northwestern they are usually impressed or say, "That's a good school" if they're familiar with it--which not everyone back home on the east coast is (sometimes people confuse it with Northeastern for example). Unless they're from UChicago (our rival), who think they're better than us, or one of our rivals in the Big Ten who deride our poor football and basketball teams.... The Northwestern Administration is okay I guess, but I'm really annoyed at their recent alarming of the side doors in the dorms 24/7 (they used to be alarmed only between 8 pm and 8 am before, but accessible at all other times), because not only is it really inconvenient (I have to walk way out of my way to go through the front door when approaching the dorm from behind from Evanston, which is rather counterintuitive when it's dark out before 8 pm), but also really stupid and unhelpful security-wise--because who breaks into the dorms during the day?! I'd like to know their figures, to justify alarming the doors during the day (and honestly, as far as school shootings go it wouldn't prevent the person if they knew someone in the dorm during the day, as was the case at VT)! In fact, it's less safe in that it makes "tailgating" (coming in behind a resident) easier during the day since everyone is funnelled in through one door, which is opened more often now--and if an intruder were to get into the front door they'd have a lot more access to the dorm and places to hide (the entire basement and much of the first floor) whereas if they came in through the side door they'd have access to a stairwell, with all doors going onto the floors locked....that's my biggest pet peeve! I remember lots of students complaining about it last year too, esp. the first quarter when they alarmed the doors....The other new security measures like the security guards at night are good however (though this time last year the side doors would have been locked whenever the guards were around anyway!). The biggest recent controversy on campus I think is the Journalism school much-disliked Dean, Dan Lavine's, having been caught making up positive student quotes in an alumni newsletter to get support for an unpopular program of his. One experience I'll always remember is when Stephen Colbert was in our homecoming parade--see below in the "social life" section for more details....one unusual thing about Northwestern in the Quarter system, which is different from most schools, and mean that we have three terms each year instead of only two--as a result we have the opportunity to take a greater variety of classes and don't have any homework over spring break (which is nice), though it's also much more stressful and hectic b/c things have to move at a greater pace when each term is only 9 weeks....I can't believe it's already the end of Winter Quarter for example, it feels like I only just started it a few weeks ago!

The best thing about Northwestern is the overall atmosphere. The campus is really pretty, and there are enough nice people and professors to make one feel at home. I would change NU's shuttle service, and have it make more stops (such as at specific dorms and the library). I also wish the library was open later on weekends. The size of the school feels just right for me. I spend most of my time in the library on campus. It's a nice place to be - I occasionally spend my entire afternoon and evening there, and eat in the Cafe. I don't think NU is a college town at all, and that's why I love it! I like to be in a city where actual people and families live, not just students. It makes me feel like I'm living a real life, and not just spending a temporary time at a school.

the best thing about Northwestern is being close to Chicago; I would make the school a little bigger; I spend most of my time on north campus; the administration is confused

Chicago is one of my favorite things. It makes your later years when you start getting bored with campus bars more entertaining. There are so many greats bars downtown. The beach on campus rocks too. I would change the structure of the campus and divide it more from the evanston community. A more college campus feeling would be better. The town doesn't really gives the impression that there is a college right there. No signs in the window for NU sports or any enthusiasm at all. The size of the school is great. It not a small liberal arts school but not an overwhelming state school either where classes are 600 people. I love the reaction I get from people when I tell them I go to NU, they say "wow, so you're pretty smart" It's a great felling to feel like you go to a distinguished university. I think the sports aspect of school pride is lacking. The teams that are popular on campuses, basketball and football, are just not good here, especially compared to the rest of the big ten. Plus we are smaller then the rest of the BT so are student section is unimpressice. A

The best thing about NU is the location. I would like a larger social scene. It's close to the right size, but a few more social kids would make it a good time. Most people are generally impressed, unless they're idiots. In my fraternity. What college town? The NU Admin feels very detached from the actual student body and student experience. The Medill Dean is getting in trouble for incorrectly quoting someone in a magazine article that he wrote. No, there is not a lot of school pride. There isn't much unusual about Northwestern. Getting hammered on the beach in the spring. Students usually complain about the weather.

The best thing about Northwestern is its academics. The teaching is usually superb and the quarter system allows for a very diverse and plentiful set of courses. The size of the school is perfect: medium-sized - not too small, not too big. People are generally impressed when I tell them I go to Northwestern, but then again I come from a small river town. I'll never forget how my roommate's and my room was so dirty that we never noticed the cup of poop that our friends put in our room as a prank.

I think one of my favorite things about Northwestern is that we have Evanston kind of meshed in along with campus. Downtown is literally across the street, which is nice for late night Burgar King runs and such. There's everything- theatres, clothing stores, restaurants, bookstores. Just don't expect anything to come cheap other than fast food.