<p>Hey guys,</p>
<p>First of all - thanks in advance for reading this. It means a lot. </p>
<p>So a few weeks ago, I found out I was lucky enough to get accepted into Weinberg to study Economics. The idea of going to NU is undeniably enticing, I just have a few things for which I was hoping to get input before I finalize my decision. </p>
<p>Some background info on me: I've finished two years at a small liberal arts school in the South and was actually set to graduate next year (three-year track, if you will). This sounds great and all...except I hate my school. It's riddled with the wrong kind of frat-stars (I have no problem with greek life) and suffers from anti-intellectualism and a stark lack of diversity. Plus, having lived my entire life in the South, I want to move, and Chicago sounds like a great place.</p>
<p>I'm looking for a place where I can be happy as I balance my love of athletics/partying/studying, not necessarily in the context of a fraternity or club that defines my college niche. Is Northwestern the right place for me? Could you guys offer some general insights into student life at Northwestern? More background - I'm Indian, and I love the gym, basketball, herbal journeys (me trying to be PC), and studying. I'm also hoping to work in finance upon graduation.</p>
<p>Some more questions, if you can bear it:
What's the general stigma associated with Indians? Through my experiences I've come to be very sensitive of race/racism, I like to mix with literally every kind of person.
Thoughts on the econ department and the feasibility of combining it with Business/English passion studies?
What's it going to be like being a junior transfer? I'm a sociable guy but I'm worried about potential barriers this places on me.</p>
<p>Thanks again for reading,
Peace</p>
<p>Congrats! </p>
<p>I’m currently a student at Northwestern, so here are some of my thoughts:</p>
<p>First off, I feel like Greek life is actually kind of big at Northwestern, as well. Just something that you might want to keep in mind. Northwestern definitely doesn’t suffer from anti-intellectualism and for the most part it doesn’t suffer from a lack of diversity (depending on what type of diversity you’re looking for), so that should be a good contrast from your current school. I love Chicago and I hope you come to, as well! There are shuttles that take students from the Evanston campus to Chicago (every day except on Sundays) so take advantage of those. </p>
<p>You should be able to balance your love of athletics/partying/studying here, as the majority of the students here are multidimensional and aren’t just invested in studying (although of people are still very invested in that). And although there isn’t a finance major here, a large proportion of students here do go into finance after graduation.</p>
<p>I don’t think there’s really any general stigma associated with Indians- racially, Northwestern is pretty diverse.</p>
<p>I’m an econ major and I’ve enjoyed all the classes I’ve had so far. The econ professors I’ve had thus far have also all been very good. It’s very feasible to combine econ with business (there’s a Business Institutions Program minor available here if you want to look into that if you haven’t already) and English. I’m not sure how that will work out for you since you’re a transfer, though and what credits you already have (but typically it’s very easy to combine those interests since we’re on the quarter system and thus take more classes than you would at a semester school). </p>
<p>I don’t really know what it’ll be like being a junior transfer but I’d just encourage you to join clubs and student groups to make friends. Warning/sidenote- you’ll have to apply to a lot of the clubs you want to join (don’t know if you already knew that but you should be aware of it).</p>
<p>Overall I think you’d enjoy Northwestern; feel free to let me know if you have any more questions!</p>
<p>@vivaciousgopher Can you elaborate on the process of applying to clubs and how hard it is to get into a club? I am curious if it is just a few popular clubs or all of them. This is the second time I have seen someone mention having to apply to the clubs and I am curious how it works since it seems a little different than other schools. Thanks!</p>
<p>Most (but not all) clubs on campus require an application and an interview (some involved two rounds of interviews or maybe even more ie for certain business fraternities there is a very rigorous recruitment process). Clubs generally have recruitment in the fall and the spring. It’s difficult to say how hard it is- it just really surprised me when I first got here freshmen year and caught me off guard. Some freshmen went to more competitive high schools and are quite successful at getting into these clubs. I’d say the majority of freshmen, however, find it at least a bit challenging getting into clubs during the fall. I would say it gets easier to get into clubs as a person gets older and more experienced. However, certain clubs, such as student consulting groups are always very competitive. It’s challenging getting into clubs sometimes because at schools like Northwestern, there are way more qualified students than spots available. </p>
<p>I don’t think this is uncommon for more “elite” (whatever that means to you) schools. </p>