Northeastern University Shatters Records With 106,907 Applications for 2026—What It Means for Acceptance Rates

Northeastern University has smashed its own admissions record for the seventh straight year, logging 106,907 undergraduate and graduate applications for the 2026-27 cycle—up nearly 2% from last year’s 105,092 submissions. With an acceptance rate that hovers around 5% and a No. 46 national ranking from U.S. News & World Report, the Boston-based research powerhouse continues to tighten its selectivity even as demand climbs. Why the surge? Enrollment chief Satyajit Dattagupta points to Northeastern’s century-old cooperative education model, which now partners with 4,661 employers worldwide and lets students graduate with up to 18 months of paid, career-aligned work experience—an edge he calls “unparalleled in higher education”. Data released by the university show New York, Massachusetts, California, New Jersey and Texas leading domestic interest, while China, India, South Korea, Canada and Brazil top the international charts. To accommodate the swell of Huskies—and to reduce strain on Boston’s rental market—Northeastern broke ground this month on a 23-story, 1,215-bed residence hall at 840 Columbus Avenue, its largest housing project to date. Scheduled to open in 2028, the glass-and-terracotta tower will feature solar shading, rooftop gardens, shared learning spaces and 11,000 square feet of publicly accessible community rooms, according to developer American Campus Communities. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu hailed the project as “a model for sustainable urban campus design” during a ceremonial shovel-turning alongside President Joseph E. Aoun, who emphasized that “adding beds on campus is the fastest way to free up housing for local families”. The residence hall is the anchor of Northeastern’s new Institutional Master Plan, which also calls for redeveloping the aging Matthews Arena site into a 290,000-square-foot athletics complex later this decade. The admissions office will release early-decision notifications on March 15, with regular decisions following in early April. Accepted students have until May 1 to reply—a deadline that will determine whether Northeastern’s record applicant pool converts into its most selective first-year class yet.