Housing and food

Approximately 4,100 undergraduate students at Northwestern live in University residences, 1,000 have chosen to live in fraternity and sorority houses, and the remaining 2,500 commute from home or live off-campus. As an incoming freshman, you are guaranteed on-campus housing if you requested it on your admission application. However, you cannot live in a fraternity or sorority house.

Our 31 residences house from as few as 27 students to more than 600. Most rooms are doubles, but residences also contain single, triple, and quadruple rooms and suites. Some of our residences are older and ivy-covered; others were built more recently. The Undergraduate Housing web site describes housing options in further detail.

Houses

Smaller living units, called houses, accommodate from 27 to 50 students. Each house is different in style, size, room arrangement, and character. You may select a coeducational house or one where all members are of the same sex. None offer dining facilities; residents use the food service of a nearby larger hall.

Halls

The residences on campus called halls accommodate more students than the houses, as many as 600 in the largest. These large residences frequently have the resources to provide a wider range of planned activities and allow students to interact with a more diverse group of students. Coeducational housing is available in all halls. The coed arrangement varies from hall to hall, but in each a reasonable degree of privacy is provided — men and women live on separate floors or in separate sections.

Residential colleges

In the early 1970s, the first residential colleges were established at Northwestern. Their purpose was to bring faculty and students together outside the classroom where they could explore common ideas and interests. There are now 11 residential colleges organized around various themes, including business, engineering, community service, and the arts. The undergraduate residents, with the faculty masters and associate masters, plan activities and special programs related to the residence's theme.

Fraternities and sororities

In addition to being social organizations, most fraternities and sororities (collectively known as the Greek system) offer housing. Rates for room and board are similar to University housing charges. The fraternities and sororities operate small (25-65 person) houses that are managed by students.

Opportunities to join Greek organizations are available all year but are concentrated in a rush period held early winter quarter. Housing arrangements are made with the organizations, not through the University.

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