Enrollment Trends at Northwestern

2,201

Total Enrollment

-736

Men

2,937

Women

The student population at Northwestern University is 23,856 (9,399 undergraduate and 14,457 graduate students) . The number of students has increased by 2,201 over the past decade.

The percentage of undergraduate students at Northwestern is 39.40% which is increased by 560 over last 10 years. The graduate student population increased by 1,641 and it has been increasing.

The female to male ratio is 1.23 to 1 which means that female students enrolled slightly more than male students.

781 students enrolled in online degree program exclusively and the number of online students has decreased by -52.03% since 2015.

Student Population Changes

The average student population over the last 11 years is 22,629 where 23,856 students are attending the school for the academic year 2024-2025.

39.40% of total students is undergraduate students and 60.60% students is graduate students. The number of undergraduate students has increased by 560 and the graduate enrollment has increased by 1,641 over past 10 years.

The female to male ratio is 1.23 to 1 and it means that there are slightly more female students enrolled in Northwestern than male students.

The following table and chart illustrate the changes in student population by gender at Northwestern University since 2015.

YearTotalUndergraduateGraduate
TotalMenWomenTotalMenWomen
2015-1621,6558,8394,4154,42412,8167,0175,799
2016-1721,823
168
8,791
-48
4,352
-63
4,439
15
13,032
216
6,984
-33
6,048
249
2017-1822,008
185
8,700
-91
4,284
-68
4,416
-23
13,308
276
6,973
-11
6,335
287
2018-1922,127
119
8,642
-58
4,192
-92
4,450
34
13,485
177
6,916
-57
6,569
234
2019-2022,448
321
8,682
40
4,214
22
4,468
18
13,766
281
6,895
-21
6,871
302
2020-2122,603
155
8,559
-123
4,065
-149
4,494
26
14,044
278
6,841
-54
7,203
332
2021-2223,409
806
8,847
288
4,082
17
4,765
271
14,562
518
6,882
41
7,680
477
2022-2323,161
-248
8,993
146
4,126
44
4,867
102
14,168
-394
6,585
-297
7,583
-97
2023-2423,203
42
9,157
164
4,130
4
5,027
160
14,046
-122
6,378
-207
7,668
85
2024-2523,856
653
9,399
242
4,254
124
5,145
118
14,457
411
6,442
64
8,015
347
Average22,6298,8614,2114,65013,7686,7916,977
Northwestern University Enrollment Trends Chart

Undergraduate Enrollment Changes

The average number of Undergraduate students over the last 11 years is 8,861 where 9,399 students are attending the Undergraduate school for the academic year 2024-2025. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in Undergraduate enrollment by attending status and gender at Northwestern University since 2015.

YearTotalFull-timePart-time
TotalMenWomenTotalMenWomen
2015-168,8398,2474,1394,108592276316
2016-178,7918,2984,1464,152493206287
2017-188,7008,2054,0654,140495219276
2018-198,6428,1614,0144,147481178303
2019-208,6828,2844,0504,234398164234
2020-218,5598,0953,8694,226464196268
2021-228,8478,4383,9474,491409135274
2022-238,9938,6563,9904,666337136201
2023-249,1578,7943,9924,802363138225
2024-259,3999,0204,1164,904379138241
Average8,8618,8614,0334,3878,861179263
Northwestern University Undergraduate Enrollment Trends Chart

Graduate Enrollment Changes

The average number of Graduate students over the last 11 years is 13,768 where 14,457 students are attending the Graduate school for the academic year 2024-2025. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in Graduate enrollment by attending status and gender at Northwestern University since 2015.

YearTotalFull-timePart-time
TotalMenWomenTotalMenWomen
2015-1612,8168,9384,7284,2103,8782,2891,589
2016-1713,0329,1774,7594,4183,8552,2251,630
2017-1813,3089,4594,8444,6153,8492,1291,720
2018-1913,4859,5874,8494,7383,8982,0671,831
2019-2013,7669,9104,9095,0013,8561,9861,870
2020-2114,0449,6414,6375,0044,4032,2042,199
2021-2214,56210,3974,8905,5074,1651,9922,173
2022-2314,16810,6084,9065,7023,5601,6791,881
2023-2414,04610,6574,8865,7713,3891,4921,897
2024-2514,45711,1705,0396,1313,2871,4031,884
Average13,76813,7684,8455,11013,7681,9471,867
Northwestern University Graduate Enrollment Trends Chart

Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity Changes

The percentage of white students is 32.86% and the percentage of black students is 6.47% at Northwestern University. 15.96% of enrolled students is Asian. Hispanic students comprise 10.57% of the student body.

Over the past 10 years, the racial composition has shifted. The percentage of white students decreased from 46.50% to 32.86%. Asian enrollment grew from 13.35% to 15.96%. Black student enrollment increased from 4.95% to 6.47%. Hispanic student representation expanded from 7.87% to 10.57%.

The overall racial diversity, measured by the Census Bureau Diversity Index, is 0.8487 which indicates that highly diverse. This increased from 0.7564 a decade ago, suggesting that racial diversity has improved.

The following table and chart illustrate the student population trends by race/ethnicity at Northwestern University over the past 11 years (2015-2025).

YearAmerican Indian or Native AmericanAsianBlackHispanicNative Hawaiian or Other Pacific IslanderWhiteTwo or More Races
2015-16202,8921,0731,7041410,070630
2016-17262,9391,0901,805109,838713
2017-18243,0181,1211,866119,726772
2018-19293,1121,1701,908139,673828
2019-20283,2441,1921,948119,633869
2020-21293,5071,2822,08989,745907
2021-22283,7181,3082,302129,506983
2022-23223,6971,2962,330178,5601,059
2023-24203,7991,3862,420168,0401,120
2024-25293,8081,5432,521107,8401,176
Average263,3731,2462,089129,263906
Northwestern University Enrollment by Race Trends Chart

Distance Learning (Online Courses) Enrollment Changes

781 students are enrolled in online degree programs exclusively for the academic year 2024-2025, which is 3% of total students. The number of online students has decreased -52.03% since 2015. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in the online student population by enrolled type at Northwestern University from 2015 to 2025.

YearTotal EnrollmentOnline CompletelyEnrolled in Some Online CoursesNot Enrolled in Online Courses
2015-1621,6551,628020,027
2016-1721,8231,387020,436
2017-1822,0081,281020,727
2018-1922,127654021,473
2019-2022,448418022,030
2020-2122,603329022,274
2021-2223,4091,740021,669
2022-2323,1611,1231,59420,444
2023-2423,2039581,51520,730
2024-2523,8567811,50921,566
Average22,6291,03046221,138

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