Is the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign or Northeastern more selective for admissions?

Northeastern is typically more selective overall for undergraduate admissions than the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. It gets a very large applicant pool, is especially difficult in regular decision, and has become known for admissions that are hard to predict from the outside. UIUC is also highly competitive, but its selectivity varies much more by major, with some programs far tougher than the university as a whole.

That major-by-major variation is the biggest reason this comparison is not perfectly one-size-fits-all. At UIUC, programs like computer science, engineering, and business can be extremely hard to enter, in some cases feeling more selective than Northeastern for that specific field. By contrast, other UIUC majors are noticeably less difficult to access than those top programs.

Northeastern’s selectivity is more tied to the institution overall than to a few standout majors. Its applicant volume, heavy interest from students across the country, and enrollment management through options like alternate entry paths make it widely viewed as one of the tougher admissions outcomes to call. That means even strong applicants often see it as a reach.

The main exception is if you are comparing Northeastern to one of UIUC’s most competitive direct-entry programs, where UIUC can be just as hard or harder for that particular major.