Entering Class Profile
Approximately one of every eight applicants to United States medical schools for the 2011-12 academic year applied to Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. The 176 members of the Class of 2015 include 93 men and 83 women. Students list more than 90 undergraduate majors — from biology and chemistry to nursing, economics, and religious studies. Collectively, incoming students speak 29 different languages, including Chinese, French, and Russian.
The undergraduate grade point average (GPA) for the Class of 2015 averages 3.76 overall and 3.71 in the sciences. Average scores on the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) for the class are 12.0 in the biological sciences, 11.9 in the physical sciences, and 10.9 in verbal skills. The medical school received 6,538 applicants for the 129 positions available through the regular admissions process.
Students from the Class of 2015 are part of one the medical school's most diverse groups to date. Thirty-five students self-identified as part of underrepresented minority groups. Among the 176 matriculates, represented racial and ethnic groups include 10 (6 percent) African and African American; 47 (27 percent) Asian; 22 (13 percent) Hispanic; 2 (1 percent) Native American or Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander; and 85 (48 percent) white. Ten new students chose not to self-describe.
There are 15 (9 percent) nontraditional students – those who have taken off two or more years between their undergraduate studies and medical school – in the class. Together with the traditional students, the M1 class ranges in age from 20 to 39 years old, claim 68 institutions as their undergraduate alma maters, and hail from 32 states and 10 foreign countries.
Twenty-four students entered through the Honors Program in Medical Education (HPME) and six through the Northwestern Undergraduate Premedical Scholars Program (NUPSP). Thirteen students entered the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP ) and will receive both MD and PhD degrees upon completion of their studies; 15 students will earn MD/Master of Public Health (MD/MPH) degrees and two others will earn a combined MD/Master of Arts in Medical Humanities and Bioethics (MD/MA).
Ten members of the 2015 class have earned advanced degrees, including one Doctor of Philosophy, one Juris Doctor, three Master of Science, three Master of Arts, and two Master of Health.
Members of the new class enter with extensive research experience: 89 percent engaged in research on the undergraduate or graduate level. Twenty-one percent are authors on a research publication or presentation. As undergraduates, new students were awarded prestigious research awards from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation and The Presidential Scholars Foundation. Among the Class of 2015, 68 percent were also awarded academic honors and 22 percent awarded scholarships as undergraduate students.
All incoming students entered with volunteer experience. Service ranged from volunteering with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America to participating in alternative spring break missions. In addition, first-year students have participated in medical missions all over the world; more than 50 percent of students have traveled overseas to work as tutors, mentors, and teachers.
The 2015 class includes a radio disk jockey and former Northwestern University tour guide. Several students are also musicians and photographers, and many were active in intercollegiate sports like rugby, soccer, swimming, and diving.
This page last updated Jan 3, 2012