Northwestern University Top Questions

Like any university certain groups on campus get labeled. Almost any group is criticized about being too exclusive by another group. I would say for Northwestern in general, the students get strapped with the nerdy label. We're lame and can't party like the state schoolers. Freshmen year I heard a lot of people, especially older undergrads complain that there is no one attractive here. I disagree, plus you know they aren't dumb as a box of rocks. We are a small school and you get to know everyone pretty quickly so the pool to choose from isn't that great but we have all of Chicago.

Nerdwestern. They suck.

From the perspective of Northwestern students, Northwestern is very liberal. From the perspective of non-Northwestern students, Northwestern is the ivy league of the midwest and all the students come from very wealthy backgrounds.

When my friend found out I was applying here, she discouraged me because Northwestern guys were known for being socially awkward.

Northwestern's biggest stereotype that I am aware of is that there isn't much of a party scene. The students are supposedly overly studious and don't know how to have a good time.

That we spend all our time studying. Oh, and that we're pretentious.

I think people assume Northwestern is for two major groups of people: econ students and theater majors. It does feel that way, and so it's easy for another stereotype to grow out of that - everyone is a nerd who does not go out. Another stereotype is that everyone is super rich and spoiled.

Generally, Northwestern students are thought of as a bunch of nerdy Jews, Asians, and rich spoiled kids who are fairly intelligent, socially awkward, and physically unattractive.

Too nerdy to be social

rich spoiled kids, very jewish, homogeneous population/little diversity, work hard/play hard, nerdy, private school

Smart, nerdy, little social life

I think some stereotypes are that Northwestern is a bunch of kids who didn't get into Ivy League schools so they had to settle for here. There is also the "Nerdwestern" stereotype that students here don't go out, don't party, aren't attractive, and don't have sex. I think there may be kind of a stereotype that everyone who goes here is from the Midwest too, or Jewish and from New York.

We are the nerds of the big ten.

unfriendly, cliquey, career-oriented, self centered, mean

Northwestern is stereotyped as incredibly pre-professional, frat-dominated, a party school, academically challenging, grade deflated and prestigious. Northwestern students are stereotyped as the "work hard, play hard" types and have a reputation as very social individuals who are also at the top of their game academically and extracirricularly.

We're all spoiled and rich.

Spend too much time studying, worried about grades and jobs, don't go out that much, notoriously bad dating scene, the University does not care about the undergraduate students very much But, people are generally nice, friendly, very intelligent, very active on campus, passionate about something, and when they can spare a moment, do enjoy having a good time

Study too much, ugly, bad sports fans

Northwestern students are perceived by others as being either pretentious and elitist (by other state schools in the Big Ten) or stupid and overly Greek (by its Ivy League competitors)

We are SO intense! Also, very very preppy.

Nerdy, Rich, Out-spoken, book worms

Really nerdy people who like try to party hard to hide their nerdiness. Also, a lot of people who were never "popular" come to Northwestern and now think they have the opportunity to be somebody they never could be in high school.

That there is no party scene, that no one goes out, that everyone studies all of the time, that there are no attractive girls/guys

All frat boys and sorority girls. All preprofessional. Unnecissarily freak out about schoolwork all the time.

Everybody's from the Midwest, everybody's rich, everybody's stuck-up.

Relatively anti-social and awkward

Most people think that Northwestern students are nerdy and study too much...we have the reputation "Nerdwestern" for this reason.

Dont know how to party Dont care about sports will CUT YOU for an extra GPA point

That we are a wee bit nerdy and study the day away. Also, the male population is simply not that attractive.

Work Hard, Play hard. Everyone is very nerdy. No one dates. journalism students are very driven. Engineering students never have a life.

That we're nerdy, smart, and don't go out that often.

Nerds, stuck up,

Northwestern is torn. It considered a nerd school and a party school. Best of both worlds!

really smart, either you go out a lot or you don't go out at all, if you're an athlete then you're not that smart

That they are huge dorks and don't know how to party.

Nerdy, below-average attractiveness, smart, snow, theater, quarter system, Jewish

Greek life, theaterh

In my home town you're lucky if someone's even heard of Northwestern. And if they have, all they know about it is that it's a "smart" school. Most of the stereotypes I know of have been spread by actual Northwestern students, the Purple Book, or blurbs from the internet. I've heard things like Ivy League of the Midwest, slightly better social life than U of C, a bunch of kids who walk around in other Ivy League school sweatshirts or North Face jackets and ipod headphones on walking with their heads down and don't say hi to many people.

Because I knew little about Northwestern before my freshman year, I wasn't exposed to many stereotypes about its students prior to attending. Since being here, however, I have encountered many (and sometimes contradicting) stereotypes. The first, of course, is that Northwestern students are anti-social nerds. I think this stereotype accompanies students at any top academic institution. Moreover, there is some feeling that all students at Northwestern were Ivy-League rejects and thus their hearts were not set on coming here. Finally, Northwestern students are often thought of as rich and apathetic.

Northwestern is known to be a hard school academically, pathetic school athletically, and full of rich, smart kids who don't know how to throw a decent party.

Stereotypes are that we are all geeks and nerds. Also, that we have no social lives.

Fueled by Starbucks, Northwestern students are self-important rich kids who, for some reason, waste their entire lives studying. This may be best exemplified through the less-than-stellar athletics program, where we usually fall last in the Big Ten. Not terribly diverse, except for athletes, who are almost all on scholarships. Lots of flamboyant theater kids, a controversial journalism program and some socially-awkward engineers thrown in, too...who no one ever sees because they're always studying.

Northwestern students have Ivy-envy Northwestern students are too engrossed in their books to socialize.