Just returned from a tour of Northwestern. Only able to visit in summer which makes it difficult to get a feel for campus.
D17 is interested in Engineering. There were 10 tour guides available after info session, 7 theatre majors, 1 public policy and 2 communication. Not a single science or engineering student was giving tours. At the end of tour my daughter turned to me and asked, " Is this school science oriented enough for me? Also is the engineering department intimate enough that the professors really get to know the students? We did attend engineering session and was really impressed with the program.
Tell your D not to worry - NU is plenty good for Enginerds! I can say that because I have a son and a daughter graduate from McCormick. D was listed as a author on a paper because she helped the Prof with research. Son got a nice summer job doing research for a different prof, and both had jobs before they graduated. As far as tour guides & engineering - could be a local hiring bias, or that engineers are way too busy doing other fun stuff. And then, theater majors gotta perform & communications majors gotta communicate - it’s what they do!
BTW NU does a great job from day one with the Engineering First Program. http://www.mccormick.northwestern.edu/academics/undergraduate/core-curriculum/engineering-first.html
Good luck to your D, and PM me if you have more detailed questions.
Let me share a few data points: In the USNWR ranking of engineering undergrad programs, among the schools that have doctorate as the highest degree, McCormick is ranked 7th among private schools: after MIT, Stanford, Caltech, CMU, Princeton, and Cornell. It has two very highly ranked departments: Material Science and Industrial Engineering, both among top 5 in the country (private and public combined) . Electrical Engg. Computer Engg, and Computer Science are not ranked high, all others are in top 12 or so. With an announcement of 20 new positions in Computer Science, it is going to start climbing ranking there as well.
There was a link posted on this forum by someone which said that Northwestern is 10th in the country for high-impact science research: this is largely driven by a very strong Chemistry program.
In summary, just based on various rankings out there, NU isn’t weak for science and engineering. It is obviously not MIT, CalTech, or Princeton, but is stronger than many other top private schools in these areas.
It would have been a bad sign if your tour guides were bunch of engineers instead. That would have meant they were not doing research, internships, or co-ops.
@FarmerMom “Is this school science oriented enough for me” The answer is yes. Northwestern has a very strong engineering program and science program. In fact, it has special academic programs for those interested in STEM such as ISP, HPME, and some math programs. Science and Engineering are far from ignored. The only times you should expect engineering/science majors to be leading tours at a college is if it’s a program-specific tour or if it’s a STEM school like Georgia Tech or MIT.
“Is the engineering department intimate enough…” Probably. NU has a student/faculty ratio of 7/1 and Mccormick’s is 9/1, both are very low numbers, definitely indicating intimacy. It is much smaller than other top engineering schools like Michigan, Illinois, Purdue, and Wisconsin to name a few in that region, so it will be much more intimate than most other high-caliber engineering schools.
To add to @osuprof 's discussion of rankings, these shouldn’t be weighed too heavily. Rankings are determined by a formula that a few people designed based on what they personally thought was important. Northwestern would still set your daughter up for success like many other schools would
I hope your daughter ends up in a school that makes her happy.
Unless you look for a tech school, Northwestern is one of the best for science/engineering.
- Among the private schools, Northwestern has one of most extensive engineering programs.
- Most engineering departments are highly ranked by USN, including 3 in the top 10 (industrial, material science, and biomedical).
- It has one of the oldest and most established co-op programs in the country.
- Chemistry is ranked in the top 5 or top 10 (depending on who's doing the ranking).
- ISP is among the most advanced and intense undergrad science programs. People compare it to CalTech.
- As you already know, Engineering First is unique and awesome.
“There were 10 tour guides available after info session, 7 theatre majors, 1 public policy and 2 communication. Not a single science or engineering student was giving tours. At the end of tour my daughter turned to me and asked, " Is this school science oriented enough for me?”
Oh my goodness, absolutely.
And think about this: does it really surprise you that theatre majors – people who are extroverted, love performing in front of crowds, and are really good at doing so – would be both interested in AND get student tour guide jobs??
STEM is definitely one of Northwestern’s strengths. There’s a big community of science students in Weinberg (liberal arts college) and engineering students from the McCormick school, and a lot of them do sciencey/engineery things outside of the classroom, like research or a STEM-focused extracurricular. Northwestern also continues to churn out high-quality scientific/engineering research.
As for professors, at least in my department in McCormick, it is easy for professors to really get to know students. I, for instance, am starting a research project next year with my academic advisor, who is one of the main professors in my department, and am looking forward to it!
1 Like