Is Northwestern difficult to get into?

Northwestern University is one of the top ranked universities. It has a ranking of #28 in the world and #14 in the USA based on the Shiksha Popularity Rankings 2025. It also has been ranked well for its academic schools on the main Illinois campus. The rankings of the university by ranking bodies are mentioned in the table below:

Northwestern University has a lot of academic schools in areas such as Medicine, Journalism, Communication, Music among others. It is included in the 4 top 10 national universities and is also included in the top 20 in the 4 graduate school rankings. The school rankings at the university are mentioned below:

Northeastern University has not specified any minimum GPA requirement for admissions. But from the past data, a GPA of 3.85 on a 4.0 scale is very competitive. Most of the applicants with the mentioned GPA were offered admission. 

On a related note, although the entrance tests like the SAT or ACT are not required for this year admission cycle, having a good score in these exams and submitting them with your application can raise your chances of admission at Northwestern. 

The Harvard University tuition fee is lower than that of Northwestern University, Harvard is way harder to get into, as its acceptance rate is just 6%. The Northwestern University acceptance rate is 13% which is more than double that of Harvard. So, if you are looking for better chance to get in, Northwestern is calling, but if you want cheaper tuition and the ivy league status, Harvard is reallly good. 

Medicine and Health specialised courses are ranked #23 by Shiksha Ranking, #13 by US News, #42 by QS Ranking, and #46 by THE (Times Higher Education). Medicine and Health specialised courses' ranking is as follows: