General Information
History
Northwestern University is a private institution founded in 1851 to serve the Northwest Territory, an area that now includes the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and parts of Minnesota. In 1853 the founders purchased a 379-acre tract of land on the shore of Lake Michigan 12 miles north of Chicago. They established a campus and developed the land near it, naming the surrounding town Evanston in honor of one of the University's founders, John Evans. After completing its first building in 1855, Northwestern began classes that fall with two faculty members and 10 students.
Campuses
Northwestern has three campuses. Two campuses are located on Lake Michigan: a 240-acre campus in Evanston, the first suburb north of Chicago, and a 25-acre campus in Chicago. One campus is located in Doha, Qatar.
Schools and Colleges (with year of founding)
- Judd A. and Marjorie Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences (1851)
- School of Communication (1878)
- School of Continuing Studies (1933)
- School of Education and Social Policy (1926)
- Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science (1909)
- Graduate School (1910)
- Medill School of Journalism (1921)
- J.L. Kellogg School of Management (1908)
- Feinberg School of Medicine (1859)
- Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music (1895)
- Northwestern University in Qatar (2008)
Full-Time Enrollment by School, 2007-08
| School | Undergraduate | Graduate/Professional | Total |
| Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences | 4,149 | 1,503 | 5,652 |
| School of Communication | 1,193 | 403 | 1,596 |
| School of Education and Social Policy | 275 | 152 | 427 |
| McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science | 1,394 | 796 | 2,190 |
| Medill School of Journalism | 681 | 334 | 1,015 |
| School of Law | 947 | 947 | |
| Kellogg School of Management | 1,925 | 1,925 | |
| Bienen School of Music | 408 | 247 | 655 |
| Total | 8,100 | 7,531 | 15,631 |
Full-time graduate students are also enrolled in the Graduate School.
The School of Continuing Studies enrolls approximately 1,100 students in part-time, evening undergraduate and graduate programs. Additional part-time students bring the University's total enrollment to approximately 17,000.
Athletics
A charter member of the Big Ten and the conference's only private institution, Northwestern sponsors 19 intercollegiate athletic teams (8 men's and 11 women's) and numerous club sports.
During the 2007-08 season the Wildcats had 1 NCAA team champion, 1 NCAA individual championship, 3 conference team titles, 13 first-team All-Americans, 3 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, 11 CoSIDA Academic All-District selections, 3 conference Coaches of the Year and 6 Players of the Year and 50 All-Conference and 156 Academic All-Big Ten Athletes. Eight Wildcat teams advanced to NCAA postseason competition, including the women's lacrosse team, which captured its fifth consecutive NCAA championship. Wrestler Dustin Fox won the national championship in the heavyweight division for Northwestern, marking the University's second straight year with an individual wrestling title and the Wildcats' fourth consecutive year with an NCAA individual crown in any sport.