<p>I am considering applying to Northwestern as a transfer student next year and I was wondering how current students and alumni have felt about their time there. I have a few questions regarding your personal opinions of Northwestern. Feel free to answer any or all of the questions, or come up with some other insight regarding Northwestern. Thanks!</p>
<p>How good are the classes? How difficult are they? How good are the professors? Would it be terribly difficult to maintain a GPA above a 3.8 in a Biology major?</p>
<p>How is the social life? Is Greek life prominent? Is there a big party scene? How do most students spend their time outside the classroom when not studying? How is the area around Northwestern? I'm not too crazy about the location, but you never know.</p>
<p>Finally, would you recommend going to Northwestern? Why or why not? Feel free to list any pros and cons that might stand out.</p>
<p>You might see this same thread in other forums. This is because I am considering a good number of schools.</p>
<p>Just curious why you’re not crazy about the location? From what we’ve seen the stunning campus, scenic lakeside setting and proximity to Chicago are all among the many strong positives of the school. For us, the location couldn’t get much better!</p>
<p>MomCares, I think some students coming from the sun belt areas have trepidation about school locations in the freezer locker regions of the country.</p>
<p>I know that the SoCal students that S socialized with in August and early September (before move in to NU) had discussions about how they were all going to have to deal with the weather, “man up” (even the girls), etc. I just spoke to my S last night, who mentioned in passing that he’s really gotten used to the cold weather and … doesn’t feel like a CA boy anymore! He said he needed to walk outside somewhere close from his residence hall the other night, and just reached for a light weight hoodie and was just fine.</p>
<p>Seriously, though, we’re from the left coast and D is used to mild seaside weather, but she’s gotten excited about finding a cozy “sleeping bag” coat, cute boots, sweaters and hats and gloves. Exotic new fashion accessories!! Besides, we’re all downhill skiers who LOVE the snow!</p>
<p>I think in D’s mind, you aren’t at a world-class university without a world-class winter!</p>
<p>A Class of 2014 parent here and I agree, the location is AMAZING. That is one of the great attractions our S had to the school. We are from the south and he saw his first REAL winter of his life and some of that wasn’t fun. But he stayed in the library and music practice rooms working, which he would have done any way. The warmer weather months there are delicious and the campus is beautiful. It is an amazing school, easy access to Chicago and Evanston is quite lovely with some really great food choices. We haven’t doubted his choice to go there at all, and he turned down several full rides+ at other schools to attend there. It is worth every bit of investment to us. He has grown in leaps and bounds and is thriving!</p>
<p>@t-boneParent - SO glad to hear you feel it’s a great investment, as D also turned down several full-ride offers. We decided that an important consideration when weighing the financial aspect was to consider the value of 4 of the prime years of your child’s life. We decided if she’s motivated to spend those years among the best-and-brightest at NU, that will be priceless. We can’t wait to see what her time at Northwestern brings her!</p>
<p>I’m coming from UCSD–which to many, seems like the idyllic climate–to come to NU for grad school, and I can add that location is one of the many strengths that pulled me here rather than other places (Penn, Duke, etc.).</p>
<p>Evanston is a scenic small town with enough things to do in most bigger cities. Chicago is less than an hour away whether you drive, take the shuttle, El, or bike. Winter can be brutal at times (I visited the campus once during the middle of Winter this year), but just schedule more time to study indoors and you’ll barely notice that the snow is falling sideways. From what I hear, summers are a bit humid, though still very very nice. There are beaches at NU that will definitely remind me of home in La Jolla.</p>
<p>Anyway, location is definitely a draw and not a deterrent to me.</p>