How this school serves students from different economic backgrounds, including Pell students, first-generation pathways, and long-term mobility outcomes.
Northeastern University admits about 5.2% of applicants, making it one of the more selective private universities in the country. Among admitted students who submitted scores, the middle 50% scored between 1,440 and 1,540 on the SAT (interquartile range), or between 33 and 35 on the ACT. 12.3% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants and 18.5% are first-generation college students — a relatively narrow access profile that reflects the institution's selective admissions funnel. Transfer enrollment is limited, at 39.2% of the student body. Azimuth ranks Northeastern University #176 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. As access vs mobility in the Illinois data explores, the structural constraint here is scale: the number of low-income and first-generation students who benefit from Northeastern University's outcomes is bounded by how many gain admission in the first place. For students who do enroll, outcomes are strong. The graduation rate is 90.5% overall, with 60.5% of Pell-eligible students completing within the same window — a meaningful signal that low-income students who gain admission are well-supported through to degree completion. Retention from the first to second year stands at 96.9%. Median low-income graduate earnings reach $72,900 on a historical ten-year Scorecard measure, placing this cohort in the 93.1 percentile for low-income graduate median earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Northeastern University #590 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. The pattern is consistent with selective institutions that deliver strong per-student outcomes: low-income graduates who gain admission complete at high rates and achieve earnings well above national norms, but the institution's admission scale limits how broadly that pathway reaches students from lower-income backgrounds.
Northeastern University admits about 5.2% of applicants, making it one of the more selective private universities in the country. Among admitted students who submitted scores, the middle 50% scored between 1,440 and 1,540 on the SAT (interquartile range), or between 33 and 35 on the ACT. 12.3% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants and 18.5% are first-generation college students — a relatively narrow access profile that reflects the institution's selective admissions funnel. Transfer enrollment is limited, at 39.2% of the student body. Azimuth ranks Northeastern University #176 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. As access vs mobility in the Illinois data explores, the structural constraint here is scale: the number of low-income and first-generation students who benefit from Northeastern University's outcomes is bounded by how many gain admission in the first place. For students who do enroll, outcomes are strong. The graduation rate is 90.5% overall, with 60.5% of Pell-eligible students completing within the same window — a meaningful signal that low-income students who gain admission are well-supported through to degree completion. Retention from the first to second year stands at 96.9%. Median low-income graduate earnings reach $72,900 on a historical ten-year Scorecard measure, placing this cohort in the 93.1 percentile for low-income graduate median earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Northeastern University #590 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. The pattern is consistent with selective institutions that deliver strong per-student outcomes: low-income graduates who gain admission complete at high rates and achieve earnings well above national norms, but the institution's admission scale limits how broadly that pathway reaches students from lower-income backgrounds.
Northeastern University admits about 5.2% of applicants, making it one of the more selective private universities in the country. Among admitted students who submitted scores, the middle 50% scored between 1,440 and 1,540 on the SAT (interquartile range), or between 33 and 35 on the ACT. 12.3% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants and 18.5% are first-generation college students — a relatively narrow access profile that reflects the institution's selective admissions funnel. Transfer enrollment is limited, at 39.2% of the student body. Azimuth ranks Northeastern University #176 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. As access vs mobility in the Illinois data explores, the structural constraint here is scale: the number of low-income and first-generation students who benefit from Northeastern University's outcomes is bounded by how many gain admission in the first place. For students who do enroll, outcomes are strong. The graduation rate is 90.5% overall, with 60.5% of Pell-eligible students completing within the same window — a meaningful signal that low-income students who gain admission are well-supported through to degree completion. Retention from the first to second year stands at 96.9%. Median low-income graduate earnings reach $72,900 on a historical ten-year Scorecard measure, placing this cohort in the 93.1 percentile for low-income graduate median earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Northeastern University #590 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. The pattern is consistent with selective institutions that deliver strong per-student outcomes: low-income graduates who gain admission complete at high rates and achieve earnings well above national norms, but the institution's admission scale limits how broadly that pathway reaches students from lower-income backgrounds.
