Engineering Design Innovationat the SEGAL DESIGN INSTITUTE, McCORMICK SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

No. We do not require previous design experience for admission. We look for a demonstrated interest in design and the human-centered design process.

Be sure to highlight such interest in your past academic project examples, work experience, and personal statement.

We admit applicants with a variety of academic degrees across disciplines in STEM, humanities, and the arts.  One of the strengths of our cohort model is the diversity of expertise our students have across various fields.

The EDI program considers BS/MS applications from students requiring 4 or fewer courses toward BS degree requirements entering the Fall of their final undergraduate year. Applications should be submitted by January 15 and will be considered on the same cycle as all other applications to the cohort. While you must have at least a 3.000 GPA to be considered, there are no automatic admits to the EDI program. Please submit your application through CollegeNet. Include your BS/MS plan of study, two recommenders, and the rest of the application requirements. If requested prior to submission of your application, a fee waiver code can be provided to BS/MS applicants.

No. Students may matriculate only in the fall term.

No. We do not have a policy of automatic admission for any student.

For all complete applications submitted by January 15, we will provide either an admissions decision or notice of deferral by mid-March.

You may request an earlier decision, however, making such a request may slightly decrease the likelihood of a successful admission.

We generally follow The Graduate School's guidelines on minimum GPA and test scores:

• a minimum GPA of 3.0/4.0
• a minimum TOEFL score of 95 (Internet-based test) or minimum IELTS score of 7 is required ONLY for international students who have not previously studied at an institution where the primary instruction language is English
• In some cases, other factors are prioritized over grades and scores. Please note that grades and scores are considered alongside a wide range of other factors in determining admissibility to the EDI program. Every case is considered independently.

The best projects demonstrate that some initial research or exploration was required in order to scope the work. Take care in communicating the purpose and key learnings from each project sample submitted.

If you have a personal website showing past project work, we encourage you to include the website link in your online application. Otherwise, please upload a PDF of your work as a "writing sample" within your online application. All uploads must be less than 2.5 MB in size.

Generally, applicants submit two to six projects, depending on each project’s scale and the amount of descriptive information required.

Many of our applicants have traditional engineering backgrounds and little or no traditional design experience, so we do not expect traditional design portfolios from them.

If you received an undergraduate or graduate degree from an accredited institution where the language of instruction is English, you do not need to take the TOEFL or IELTS.

If you have taken the TOEFL/IELTS within the last two years, you may request to have those scores sent from ETS.

Under no other circumstances can the requirement be waived if your native language is not English.

New student registration opens in September. During Camp EDI, second-year EDI students will be able to field questions about elective courses and the registration process.

Use these resources to help during the registration process:
CAESAR: Student Information Portal Login
CAESAR FAQs
EDI Curriculum Breakdown
Segal Course Catalogue

Please refer to The Graduate School website for detailed information about the cost of tuition.

Students take it upon themselves to get involved in a variety of extracurricular activities. Examples include outreach-based activities such as mentoring student teams or volunteering with local elementary schools; cohort-based activities like the EDI volleyball team; and activities just for fun such as pottery classes.

Learn more about student groups offered through the Segal Design Institute.

Visit the Northwestern Student Affairs website.

Our EDI classes tend to be split down the middle — about half of our students live in Evanston and another half live in Chicago. Students who live in Chicago usually live near the Purple Line CTA train, which operates express trains to Evanston. Students also live near the Red and Brown Line trains, which easily connect to the Purple Line.

Learn more about housing at:
Northwestern’s Off-Campus How To Guide
Chicago Neighborhoods Guide
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Maps

Northwestern University's Off-Campus Life (OCL) serves as the first point of contact for all students moving and living off-campus. OCL helps educate students about their rights, responsibilities, and resources as members of the Evanston and Chicago communities.

To find out more, watch their How-To videos How to Move Off Campus and NavigatingPlaces4Students. You can also contact OCL via phone at 847-491-8430 or email at offcampuslife@northwestern.edu. 

The Graduate School (TGS) and CTA provide the CTA University Pass (U-Pass) to full-time graduate students. The CTA U-Pass program uses fare cards called Ventra, a contactless payment system that serves as a U-Pass.

You can learn more about transportation options on campus by visiting the Northwestern Shuttle Services and the Northwestern Transportation and Parking websites.