<p>I currently attend Northwestern, and I had the same issue when applying to universities. I eventually decided to just leave my first choice blank until I found out from all the schools I applied to. I think Northwestern cares more about the essay you write about why you want to attend their school than whether they are your top choice university. They definitely seem to really like having NMF/SF’s because they brag a lot about the amount that they have, but I don’t think they really take into account the first choice school too much. Then when I got accepted and decided to attend, I just listed them as my first choice school to receive the Northwestern scholarship for NMFs.</p>