Research and Resources

As a student at Northwestern, there are substantial resources available to you, from academic advising and undergraduate research grants, to an extensive library system and computing network to support you in your academic pursuits on campus.

Academic Advising

The University Academic Advising Center offers academic counsel, advice, and information to undergraduates with special emphasis on issues that cross school boundaries. The center provides premedical and prehealth advising, and assists students who are considering transferring between Northwestern's undergraduate schools, exploring double majors and dual-degrees in multiple schools, seeking to select a program of study that best fits their needs and interests, or need assistance with resolving other academic issues that transcend individual schools.

Undergraduate Research

Northwestern offers ample opportunities for students to engage in research as undergraduates. Under faculty supervision, students immerse themselves in scholarly projects in the laboratory, the library, or the studio, on campus and around the world. Each year, Northwestern's Undergraduate Research Symposium recognizes outstanding undergraduate research.

Links of interest:

Fellowships and Scholarships

The Office of Fellowships helps students from all six undergraduate schools explore and pursue scholarships, fellowships, and grants. In the last three years, Northwestern graduates have earned Rhodes, Gates, Cambridge, Marshall, and Churchill scholarships, and Fulbright grants along with a multitude of other awards.

Study Abroad

About 40 percent of our students choose to supplement their academic studies with a study abroad experience. Students at Northwestern see study abroad as a key to enhancing their global perspective. With programs throughout the world, undergraduates can partake in summer, fall, spring or full academic year programs. Northwestern's Study Abroad Office provides advisors who help our students find the best fit from our more than 120 different locations globally. Any student, regardless of school or major, has the opportunity to study abroad.

Libraries

The combined collections of the University Library total more than 4.6 million volumes, ranking 10th among private universities in the United States. The library's 4.5 million microfilm holdings include extensive backfiles of newspapers and periodicals, scientific documents, medieval manuscripts, and the full text of every book, pamphlet, or broadside published in the United States between 1639 and 1829. The Melville J. Herskovits Library of African Studies is a renowned collection containing rare recordings and source materials on Africana from pre-colonial times to present.

Supplementing the main library are the Boas Mathematics Library and the Seeley G. Mudd Library for Science and Engineering. The Charles L. Deering Library is home to the Music Library, art collections and map collections, University Archives, and the Charles L. Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections. About 30 minutes away are the Chicago campus libraries of the Feinberg School of Medicine, the School of Law, and the School of Continuing Studies.

All library resources are available to undergraduates.

Computing Services

Northwestern's Information Technology division supports academic and research computing at Northwestern. It maintains a number of public computing facilities with Macs, PCs, and UNIX workstations that provide access to application programs, instructional software, and network resources.

All academic and administrative buildings, as well as student residences, are connected to NUNet, the campus network. NUNet supports electronic mail and communication services for the Northwestern community. NUNet also provides access to a variety of information resources, including the catalog of the University Library and University website, and the internet.