Northwestern University is a critic of the Big Ten Conference.
"Despite having one of the lowest acceptance rates in the United States, Northwestern, among other prestigious colleges such as Vanderbilt, has come under scrutiny for "artificial deflation" of their acceptance rate, with more than 50% of the class being accepted in the binding Early Decision round
 In 2006, the Northwestern women's soccer team was suspended and coach Jenny Haigh resigned following the release of images of alleged hazing

