The 2023 application opens on October 15, 2022 and closes on Sunday, January 8, 2023. Decision letters will be sent in February.
No. We do not accept applications from high school seniors or from students enrolled at other universities. You must be currently enrolled at NU as a degree-seeking undergraduate student in order to apply.
No. Both certificates are open to all Northwestern undergraduates who fulfill the prerequisite courses, regardless of their school or major. We encourage all qualified students who are interested and believe that the program will contribute to their education and career goals to apply.
No. You must choose one certificate. If you are unsure about which certificate you prefer, you may want to read the course descriptions for each as well as the "Compare Certificates" chart.
Students should complete the prerequisite courses in Calculus and Microeconomics prior to the Winter quarter of the year in which they apply to the program. In other words, grades from all of the prerequisite courses should be available for review by the end of Fall quarter and available for review in January. One prerequisite course may be taken during winter quarter of the application year. Students are encouraged to take as many of the corequisite courses as possible prior to applying, but many students will continue to take the corequisite courses after entering the program. Regardless of whether students apply to the program as sophomores or juniors, they are encouraged to work towards completion of the corequisite courses during their sophomore and junior years. All corequisite courses must be completed within one year of starting the program.
Yes. However, scheduling particular courses during your senior year may be challenging, due to time constraints. Prospective students should note that program courses are offered only once per academic year, and the quarter, day and time during which they are offered can vary from year to year. Additionally, applicants planning to apply during their junior year should focus on completing corequsites during their sohpomore and junior year. Some of the program corequisites are prerequisites for certain courses, and students entering the program in the spring of their Junior year will struggle to complete all of the program courses and corequisites in one year. About 70% of Certificate Program students applied as sophomores, and the rest as juniors.
Yes, as long as you are currently enrolled at Northwestern when you apply for the Program. (You cannot apply to the Program the same time you apply to Northwestern.) If you took one or more Certificate Program prerequisite courses at your previous university, we will count it as long as Northwestern gave you transfer credit for it.
Applications are due during Winter Quarter. Admission decisions, which are based on Fall Quarter grades, are made during Winter Quarter. Students who are accepted must begin the program in the Spring.
No. We do not defer admission offers, except in unusual circumstances.
Both the Financial Economics Certificate and Managerial Analytics Certificate accept approximately 50 students per year.
It is most helpful to us if your recommender addresses more than your grades, also talking about things like your work ethic and other qualities that affect both your academic performance and the likelihood of your success in the CPU.
ADMISSION CRITERIA
Successful applicants perform at a high level academically, particularly in analytical and quantitative subjects. We review applicants' complete academic transcripts, with special emphasis on the more recent grades. Also of special interest is the student's GPA in the Certificate Program prerequisite courses. Certificate Program students typically received a “B” or better in their prerequisite and related courses. We look for overall academic accomplishment, recognizing that taking more challenging courses can have an impact on grades, as can special circumstances students may encounter at a given time.
Students are required to have a combined 3.0 average among all Certificate Program prerequisite courses in order to apply. It is acceptable to receive below a “B” in any individual prerequisite course, but the average of these courses must be 3.0 or higher in order to be considered for admission.
ABOUT THE CERTIFICATE
No. Certificate programs at Northwestern University are not considered academic majors or minors, and students remain in their home schools.
In general, no, although depending on the school, department or program, some certificate courses may count towards certain distribution requirements. Specific questions about this should be addressed with your academic adviser and/or department chair.
Students may earn only one certificate. However, students who have successfully completed one certificate may take courses in the other on a space-available basis.
Yes. The certificate is noted on a student's transcript upon successful completion of the four certificate courses and graduation from Northwestern University. Students must earn at least a "B" average in the four courses in order to earn the certificate.
While the curriculum is comprised of MBA level courses, this program is not a substitute for an MBA. Students who are interested in an MBA may choose to apply for the Kellogg Future Leaders (KFL) Deferred Enrollment MBA program during their final year of undergraduate study.
Yes. The certificate is not designed to prepare students for graduate school but is certainly able to supplement core major curriculum and can give students a sense of what to expect in the Kellogg classroom. Each year, a handful of Certificate students pursue graduate degrees, including master's, doctoral, medical, and law programs.
COMPLETING THE PROGRAM
Yes. One of the benefits of participating in the program is collaborating with your fellow Certificate Program students. Starting together as a group promotes development of the cohort.
Prospective students should note that CPU courses are offered only once per academic year, and the quarter, day and time during which they are offered can vary from year to year. As a result, it is prudent for students to take as many courses as possible during their junior year in the program in order to avoid potential scheduling conflicts during their senior year.
No. The courses do not need to be completed in one year, but the first certificate course (Principles of Finance), must be taken in the spring. At this time, the other three CPU courses may be taken in any order. As noted in the question above, however, we encourage students to complete the remaining CPU courses during their junior year to avoid scheduling conflicts during their senior year, as the course schedule varies year to year.
Yes. However, in your first year in the program, you must be on campus during Spring Quarter in order to take the required first course. You may study abroad during any other quarter or during the summer.
Many Kellogg professors employ Certificate Program students as Research Assistants. As RA’s, students work closely with the professor and can be involved in many interesting aspects of the research.
Also, students may seek out a Kellogg professor to advise them on a research project of their own design, either as a separate project or, if allowed by the student’s major department, as their senior honors thesis.
