Northeastern University application deadlines for Fall 2027
Boston, MA
Northeastern University's next deadline is Northeastern Early Action application deadline on November 1, 2026. All 10 dates are checked against Northeastern University's own pages, and each one links to the page it came from. The financial aid deadline is often weeks before the application deadline, so check both.
- Cost of attendance
- $98,322
- published for 2026‑27
- Admitted
- 5%
- of applicants
- Typical SAT
- 1490
- midpoint of admitted students
- Undergraduates
- 17,326
What families actually pay
Average paid after grants and scholarships, by family income. The full bar is the sticker price.
- Under $30k$2,264
- $30k – 48k$2,436
- $48k – 75k$5,301
- $75k – 110k$16,241
- $110k and up$47,696
U.S. Department of Education figures for 2024‑25. An average, not a quote: what you pay depends on your own aid offer.
Admission and enrolment figures are the U.S. Department of Education's for 2024‑25. Confirm anything you are deciding on with the school.
- Early Actionin about a month
Northeastern Early Action application deadline
Early Action is Northeastern's non-binding early round, so you get an early read without any commitment to enroll. The trade-off is that the committee won't see your senior year grades or late fall test scores, so only apply now if your application is already strong. You'll get a decision by February 15. Your financial aid forms for this round are due December 1, a month after the application.
If you miss it: Missing this pushes you into Early Decision II or Regular Decision, where you won't hear until March or April. You also lose the chance to have an admissions answer in hand before most of your other applications are even read.
- Early Decisionin about a month
Northeastern Early Decision I application deadline
This is Northeastern's binding Early Decision I round, so only apply this way if Northeastern is clearly your first choice and you're prepared to enroll and withdraw your other applications if you get in. You'll hear back by January 1, which is the fastest answer Northeastern gives. Applying ED I also gets you a $75 application fee waiver and access to an early estimated need-based aid review, so you can see the money before you're locked in. Remember that the aid paperwork is due two weeks later on November 15.
If you miss it: Miss this and you lose the Early Decision I admissions advantage, the ED fee waiver, and the early aid estimate. You'd have to fall back to Early Action, Early Decision II, or Regular Decision, all of which decide later.
- Financial aidin about 2 months
Northeastern financial aid deadline for Early Decision I applicants
This is the one almost nobody warns you about. If you apply Early Decision I, your FAFSA and CSS Profile are due just two weeks after your application, not in the spring. Northeastern aligns the FAFSA and CSS Profile deadlines so it can send your aid offer at the same time as your admission decision. Since ED is binding, getting this in on time is the only way to know what Northeastern will actually cost you before you're committed.
If you miss it: If your aid forms are late, you may be admitted under a binding agreement without an aid offer in hand, and you risk losing institutional need-based grant money for a commitment you cannot easily walk away from.
- Financial aidin about 2 months
Northeastern financial aid deadline for Early Action applicants
If you apply Early Action, your FAFSA and CSS Profile are due December 1, a full month after your application. Northeastern deliberately lines the two aid forms up so your aid offer can arrive with your admission decision in February. Put this on your calendar separately from the November 1 application date, because they are not the same deadline.
If you miss it: Submit late and your aid offer may not arrive with your decision, and you can lose access to Northeastern institutional grant funds that are awarded to on-time filers first.
- Scholarshipsin about 3 months
Northeastern merit scholarship consideration deadline
Northeastern does not run a separate merit scholarship application. You're automatically considered as long as your admission application is in by the Regular Decision deadline of January 1. Northeastern is test-optional and says applying without scores will not disadvantage you for merit awards. There is nothing extra to submit, so the only thing you have to do is not miss the application deadline.
If you miss it: Apply after January 1 and you're out of merit scholarship consideration entirely, with no separate appeal or later application to fall back on.
- Regular Decisionin about 3 months
Northeastern Regular Decision application deadline
Regular Decision is the standard non-binding round and gives you the most time to polish your application and let the committee see your first semester senior grades. You'll get your decision by April 1. This is also the last date to be considered for Northeastern's merit scholarships, so do not treat it as a soft target. Note that your financial aid forms are due separately on February 15.
If you miss it: Miss January 1 and you're out of the first-year admission cycle for fall 2027 entirely. You also forfeit merit scholarship consideration, which Northeastern ties explicitly to applying by this date.
- Early Decision IIin about 3 months
Northeastern Early Decision II application deadline
Early Decision II is the second binding round, built for students who realize later in the fall that Northeastern is their first choice. It's the same commitment as ED I, so if you're admitted you must enroll and pull your other applications. You'll get a decision by March 1, well before the Regular Decision crowd. The ED II fee waiver and early aid review benefits apply here too, and your aid forms are due January 15.
If you miss it: If you miss it, your only remaining option is Regular Decision, which is non-binding but gives up whatever edge the binding round carries and pushes your answer out to April 1.
- Financial aidin about 4 months
Northeastern financial aid deadline for Early Decision II applicants
Applying Early Decision II means your FAFSA and CSS Profile are due January 15, two weeks after your application. Because ED II is binding, you want that aid offer in hand when your decision arrives on March 1. Start gathering tax returns and family financial information well before the holidays so this doesn't collide with your application work.
If you miss it: A late filing can mean a binding admission with no aid package attached, and reduced or delayed institutional need-based grant funding.
- Financial aidin about 5 months
Northeastern financial aid deadline for Regular Decision applicants
If you apply Regular Decision, your FAFSA and CSS Profile are due February 15, six weeks after your January 1 application. This is a separate deadline from your application and it is easy to forget once you've hit submit. Northeastern aligns the FAFSA and CSS Profile dates so it can send your aid offer alongside your April 1 decision.
If you miss it: File late and your aid offer may not arrive with your admission decision, leaving you deciding by May 1 without knowing your real cost, and you may lose Northeastern institutional grant dollars.
- CSS Profilein about 5 months
Northeastern CSS Profile priority filing deadline
Northeastern requires the CSS Profile from anyone seeking institutional need-based aid, and its school code is 3667. The date shown here is the Regular Decision deadline, but yours is earlier if you apply early: November 15 for ED I, December 1 for Early Action, and January 15 for ED II. If you're only after federal aid and not Northeastern's own grants, you can skip the Profile and just file the FAFSA. Filing the Profile on time is what lets Northeastern send your aid offer at the same time as your admission decision.
If you miss it: Skip or delay the CSS Profile and Northeastern cannot consider you for its institutional need-based grants, which for a school with a roughly $98,000 sticker price is by far the largest source of aid you'd be giving up.
Last checked against Northeastern University's own pages on . We re-read every source page weekly, and a date that stops appearing on it is pulled from this list rather than left standing.
Common questions about Northeastern University
When is the Northeastern University application deadline for Fall 2027?
January 1, 2027, for Northeastern Regular Decision application deadline. Miss January 1 and you're out of the first-year admission cycle for fall 2027 entirely.
When is Northeastern University's Northeastern Early Action application deadline?
November 1, 2026. Missing this pushes you into Early Decision II or Regular Decision, where you won't hear until March or April.
When is Northeastern University's Northeastern Early Decision I application deadline?
November 1, 2026. Miss this and you lose the Early Decision I admissions advantage, the ED fee waiver, and the early aid estimate.
When is Northeastern University's Northeastern financial aid deadline for Early Decision I applicants?
November 15, 2026. If your aid forms are late, you may be admitted under a binding agreement without an aid offer in hand, and you risk losing institutional need-based grant money for a commitment you cannot easily walk away from.
When is Northeastern University's Northeastern financial aid deadline for Early Action applicants?
December 1, 2026. Submit late and your aid offer may not arrive with your decision, and you can lose access to Northeastern institutional grant funds that are awarded to on-time filers first.
How much does Northeastern University cost?
About $98,322 a year for 2026-27, the published sticker price before any aid.
How hard is it to get into Northeastern University?
Northeastern University admits about 5% of applicants, with a typical admitted SAT near 1490.
How many students go to Northeastern University?
Around 17,326 undergraduates.
Don't keep checking this page
Give us an email address and we'll write 30, 14, and 3 days before every Northeastern University deadline. No account, no card.