<p>bluesweetie: I am an adult and not a student at Northwestern University, although I have close connections to students at Northwestern & Chicago. My impression is that Northwestern students, as well as Chicago students, are brilliant, motivated and hardworking; and that probably is where the typicalization should stop. Journalists, theatre majors, engineers, pre-med students, musicians, highly talented SESP students and an outstanding liberal arts college combined with several of the best graduate schools in the country make up a diverse campus culture that seems to work for everybody. Town-gown relations are fine; Evanston constantly tries to get more money from incredibly wealthy Northwestern University and NU accurately points out the substantial amount of taxes it pays on a regular & proper basis. Evanston is one of the finest upscale “college towns” in the country. If you would be comfortable with the academic demands of Princeton, Harvard, Yale , Wellesley, Amherst or similiar schools, then consider Northwestern as it is not an easy undergraduate school. But Northwestern is not overly burdensome as the studentbody is highly intelligent and motivated. It is important to note that Northwestern has the third highest # of National Merit Scholars, behind Harvard & Texas, and has a current endowment that places it in the top ten in the nation.</p>