by our College Data Analytics TeamA large number of students are not billed the full sticker price of a school. Rather, they are offered a financial aid plan that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The sum total of attendance at Northwestern University can sound overwhelming, but bear in mind that many students get some type of financial aid.
What financial assistance options will Northwestern offer, and what will you qualify for? Read on for more information. Keep going to discover what amount of financial assistance could be accessible to you.
The amount of financial aid you can receive varies from person to person and will depend on your family’s economic situation. The information provided on this page can help you determine how much aid you may receive from Northwestern University.
Financial assistance, available as scholarships, loans, and work-study, is a way schools lower the price of attendance so many students can enroll. Bear in mind that not all aid is equal, and the amount any one student receives can vary widely.
Looking at the entering class at Northwestern University, 62% of entering full-time freshmen got some type of financial assistance roughly 1303 first-years).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 53% | $64,429 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 53% | $60,666 |
| Federal Pell grants | 21% | $5,918 |
| State/local grants | 6% | $8,325 |
| Federal student loans | 19% | $4,680 |
Grants and scholarships are the most valuable form of aid because, unlike loans, they never have to be repaid. At this school, around 52% of undergraduates were awarded an average grant or scholarship of $59,150 (across approximately 4768 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 52% | $59,150 |
| Federal Pell grants | 19% | $5,694 |
| Federal student loans | 17% | $5,773 |
For students living on campus and receiving title-IV aid, grants averaged $62,083.
Need-based aid means lower-income families typically pay far less than the sticker price suggests.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $2,481 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $5,268 |
| Over $75,000 | $40,903 |
Each figure is the net price after grants and scholarships, not the published sticker price.
Net price is the cost remaining after grant and scholarship aid is subtracted from the sticker price, and it is the most useful single number for estimating real cost.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $29,167 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $27,143 |
For a customized cost estimate, visit Northwestern’s NPC: npc.collegeboard.org/student/app/northwestern.
Graduating students at Northwestern carry a median federal student debt of $14,000 in federal student debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $14,000 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $15,000 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $159.02/mo |
Spreading the median graduate debt over a standard 10-year repayment schedule works out to roughly the monthly payment shown above.
Looking only at the median can be misleading because it hides the spread. The figures below chart the debt distribution at Northwestern.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,467 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $22,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $27,000 |
Outcomes differ by income bracket, by first-generation status, and by whether a student is financially dependent.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $12,369 |
| High income | $15,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Median Debt
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $13,572 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,666 |
| Independent students | $17,534 |
These indicators are derived from the underlying debt data and summarize the overall picture at Northwestern.
The Stafford loan program is the largest source of federal direct loans to undergraduates. Below is the annual Stafford program activity at Northwestern:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 33045 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $1,046,949,739 |
If you are a veteran or active-duty service member, the GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the primary federal programs you can use at this school.
Post-9/11 GI Bill recipients
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 167 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $5,478,564 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $32,806 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.