Graduate education at Northwestern University is strengthened and enriched by the diversity of our student population.  It is our goal to bring together a diverse population of master’s and doctoral degree seekers composed of students from a broad array of ethnic, national, racial, socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds and we are proud to attract and be home to such a vital, vibrant community.   

The ability of The Graduate School to attract a diverse group of students stems first from the excellence of our graduate programs.  From Sociology to Biomedical Engineering, students choose to apply to Northwestern University for the quality of our teaching and research facilities.  When the departments and programs of the university set to the task of measuring the quality of applicants and making tough admissions decisions, they do so by weighing the numerous and various attributes of a given student: choices are not made on test scores alone.  The Graduate School encourages admitting programs to interview all finalists for admission, and nearly all programs do – more times than not as part of a series of recruitment weekends held during the late winter.  The Graduate School also sponsors a number of recruitment visits across the nation throughout each academic year. 

Having recruited an excellent population, The Graduate School is committed to the success of its students once they begin their studies at Northwestern.  We understand that pursuing an advanced degree, particularly a PhD, can be a challenging experience, both personally and professionally.  At The Graduate School, we have a full staff of employees in our Office of Student Services and Office of Student Life and Multicultural Affairs ready to serve as a resource to all of our students.  These staff members work closely with our numerous student groups on campus to ensure that a true, responsive, supportive community is engendered and espoused.  These groups include: the Black Graduate Student Association, the Queer Pride Graduate Student Association, the Chinese Students and Scholars Association and the Graduate Student Association for Latino and Spanish Activities.  Additionally, we offer a variety of professional development opportunities as part of our NU Directions and Preparing Future Faculty programs, venues for students to learn more about their profession and how to be successful in it. 

We look forward to you being a part of this vital community and invite you to join what we refer to in The Graduate School mission statement as “an institutional culture that facilitates excellence in teaching, innovation and rigor in research, and the personal and intellectual growth of its diverse student population.”

Best,

Andrew B. Wachtel