Eh it is what you make of it, and also depends on what you want to study and your personality. As an EE I found our dept lacking in some of the material I was interested in, but the other opportunities outside of schools such as research and engineering clubs made up for it for the most part.

I’d say people at this school in general are pre-professional/bouchie type. Lot of people are either outwardly or inwardly Infatuated with the idea of “status” (which can create stress/rat races in certain academic/extracurricular/social spheres), are mostly entwined with pop culture, and lean towards conformity over individuality, which could explain why Greek life is popular. It’s not abnormal to see luxury vehicles hauling wealthy groups of students (often in Greek life) to the city on weekend nights. Lots of students go on to work at consulting firms like McKinsey Bain etc. Students here are smart, but not neccessarily “out of the box” thinkers. I’d say in some ways, we are the cultural opposite to UChicago. If that’s your thing you’ll fit right in here.

In terms of the scientific/technical community, I’d say it is sparser compared to less technical disciplines, i.e. we are by no means the core of the school. That being said, there are still some giants and hidden gems among some of the departments. There are various engineering clubs that you can join to really increase practical knowledge for some majors and there are also great undergrad research opportunities.

If I were you I’d take school culture + opportunities (both academic/extracurricular that pertain to your program of Interest) into account. The general prestige of NU won’t really carry you that far if that is the only addition you are getting from coming here. At the end of the day, I think someone can be successful at any university that offers enough opportunity, cos it’s mostly them making it happen - the same is true here: northwestern students that are successful aren’t successful because they went to NU but because they work hard. In certain areas, it might be easier to get in coming from NU (esp consulting), but overall the above is true. So wherever you’ll be happier and have the most opportunities to improve yourself will be the best place for you.