Northwestern is a great fit for me, but I live only a mile away, way too close for me to want to go. What are some colleges that are similar in terms of academics, surroundings, size, etc. to Northwestern, but preferably on the East Coast (feel free to list schools not on the East Coast)?
Try UPenn and Georgetown
@Minimickey nailed it. Those two are the most similar to NU on the east coast. Similar sizes, pre-professional, strong social life, high prestige, but NU is more sports oriented.
According to the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2020:
Northwestern University overlaps are:
Yale, Stanford, Harvard, Michigan, Penn, Princeton, WashUStL, & Duke.
Cornell–even though in a rural location–also has similarities to Northwestern.
Georgetown, Boston College, and the University of Virginia are others to consider.
I agree that Cornell has a very similar student vibe to NU but very different location and size.
Penn and Duke came to my mind first.
For slightly less competitive, Lehigh came to mind too in terms of campus and vibe, but not location.
Vanderbilt University is another school to consider if you like Northwestern University but need a different location.
OP: What do you want to study ? Any career in mind ?
Also might be interesting to look into a few Canadian universities: McGill, Univ. of Toronto, & the University of British Columbia.
Northeastern, BU, BC, and Penn came to mind. Maybe Yale? It’s not in a large city but very close to NYC and Boston. Georgia Tech, Duke, UNC, Wake Forest or Vanderbilt maybe? Not east coast but top notch schools in or close to large cities.
Northwestern University has a spectacular location on the shores of Lake Michigan in the upscale suburb of Evanston.
In my opinion, the campus vibe is a bit of the “serious student” due to the quality of the undergraduate students combined with the large number of graduate students–who may outnumber the undergraduate students on the Evanston campus. (The beautiful Chicago campus–in a very upscale area-- houses the law school & the med school.)
Campus, although adjacent, has a North & South divide of engineering versus liberal arts & artsy & preprofessional.
Schools mentioned in this thread include:
Northwestern
UPenn
Georgetown
Yale
Stanford
Harvard
Michigan
Princeton
WashUStL
Duke
Boston College
Virginia
Vanderbilt
Lehigh
McGill
Univ. of Toronto
Univ. of British Columbia
My D applied to Northwestern, others that share some similarities in my opinion are Duke, Vanderbilt, Rice, WashUStl, BU, Penn.
My D20 has applied to NU and feels like Tufts is very similar in a lot of ways.
I would echo the list posted above by @PrdMomto1, save for one modification: I would replace BU with Emory.
Rice is a bit of an outlier on the list insofar as it doesn’t have Greek life, but the residential college system provides a sense of solidarity (and the basis for a lively social scene) while avoiding the element of exclusivity that can plague campuses where student life revolves around frats and sororities.
Our family leans to the private academic institutions in the Power 5 conferences.
They are mid-size, are generally excellent academically, have a similar ‘can-do, happy’ campus vibe, play against and have rivalries with giant state institutions and the lifelong fans that go along with it.
Might be a good list to investigate and cull. Then add others that might not be as similar to Northwestern, but tick most of your boxes.
Northwestern Big10 (I’m an alum)
Stanford Pac12 (my wife is an alum)
Vanderbilt SEC (our 2 daughters)
Duke ACC (my close cousin)
Others include:
Wake Forest ACC
Notre Dame ACC
Boston College ACC
Baylor Big 12
USC Pac12 - not really mid-size though
Perhaps, forgetting one.
Actually, forgot two.
Miami (FL) ACC - always forget it is private
TCU a newer member of the Big 12
I have not been to either campus. Don’t know much about those two.
Taking into account size and name recognition, I’d go with Cornell and Michigan. While UMich isn’t in the northeast, it has such a diverse student body for a public university that I’m throwing it in with the likes of bigger private schools. Speaking of size, Cornell is the Ivy that in some ways sort of feels like a larger, prestigious public university.
Do you have any particular major in mind at this time?
Washington University in St. Louis or U Penn are both quite similar. Duke, to some extent. Vanderbilt, but it’s definitely got a Southern vibe. Rice, but it’s in Texas. I don’t think Yale, Stanford, or Harvard overlap with NU much, as they are VERY different in personality and style; as well, most students are going to choose the Ivy over NU if they are admitted to both. Cornell isn’t like NU at all, and it’s quite isolated, but it does have a lake. Tufts has a very similar intellectual feel, and has the city.
Thanks! I’m looking to major in economics.
This analysis will help you find schools that offer strong economics programs: