<p>Hey guys, I'm starting my college visits and the wallet's looking a bit thin. I would visit Northwestern, but only if people relieve some qualms I may have with it. It seems like the school is very ra-ra; although this in itself doesn't bother me, the preppy culture that comes with this at many schools (a la Duke) would really be a downer. So, question #1: Is Northwestern preppy? Does the sports culture ever get a little stuffy?
Going on with question #2--how are the academics? Does Northwestern live up to its name (especially in engineering)?
Finally, question #3--what are the people like? Does the suburban atmosphere (and maybe the affluence) contribute to any sort of yuppie, entitled ambience?</p>
<p>These are the main hesitations I have about spending hundreds of dollars to go see this school. Please help me out here, CC!</p>
<p>Preppy isn’t a word I’d use to describe the students. Hardly anybody here wears collared shirts if that type of student is what you mean by “preppy.” I’d say the vast majority are neutral on the surface, not preppy but not obnoxiously hipster either. Definitely a good thing IMO.</p>
<p>The sports culture is honestly not that strong. Yes, we have a lot of school spirit and football games are generally well-attended but most people here aren’t crazy for sports. Athletes do not dominate the social scene either. They can’t afford to party too much because of their demanding schedules. All the athletes I’ve met are really nice, and most are intelligent and care about their work.</p>
<p>Academics are great. I’m not familiar with engineering, so I’ll leave that to Sam Lee and others but the social sciences all have leading scholars in their respective fields and there are plenty of research opportunities to go around.</p>
<p>Students are bright, ambitious, motivated, open-minded, opinionated, fun, energetic, diverse (in a liberal sense of the word), unpretentious, and easygoing people. We make learning not just cool and hip but also hot ;).</p>
<p>I’m not sure where you got your impressions from because most of them are off base. Brebeuf answered most of your concerns, I’ll just say about the affluence and entitlement - there is a large mix of financial status for students. Kids who work 2 or 3 jobs plus financial aid, kids who never have to work in their lives and everything in between. My daughter hasn’t seen any obnoxious attitude concerning money.</p>
<p>Kids from Beverly Hills to the Bayou, the privileged to the financially strained (and worse); the student body is absolutely diverse.
NU students have lots of school spirit, but it seems to be “Big 10 Light” when it comes to sports, which I find very appealing. Not too much, not too little; a good balance.
The engineering school, from what I have heard from students in it (my child is not), is excellent, as is its reputation. It produces not only excellent engineers, businesspeople, doctors and lawyers, but also first rate Major League Baseball managers.</p>