Northwestern University is the only private university of the Midwest.
In April 2016, Northwestern became one of 15 Illinois universities to sign on to the Chicago Star Partnership, a City Colleges initiative aimed at increasing opportunities for students in the city's public school district
  Fielding eight men's and eleven women's sports teams, the Northwestern Wildcats represent the university to compete in the NCAA Division I Big Ten Conference and has remained the only private university in the conference since 1946 to 2023

