New Wildcat Beatriz Aguiar Fonseca announced her commitment to Northwestern by posting a photo of herself on Instagram. In the picture, she is decked out in purple with the words “Northwestern University” painted on her arms and her class year stamped on her forehead.

Monday marked decision day for NU’s class of 2027, and some incoming students say they feel excited for their future studies and eager to make new friends.

“Being a committed student, I feel very cared for,” Fonseca said. “I’m already loving the community. I feel so much belonging and a sense of care that I wouldn’t find in other places.”

Fonseca, who is from São Paulo, plans to major in psychology and communications studies. She currently teaches bootcamps at the Latin American Leadership Academy and centers social-emotional learning and nonviolent communication in her lessons. She plans to continue her work there remotely while studying at NU, and hopes to bring the knowledge she learns in college to the program.

Tolu Ogun, a high schooler from San Antonio, recently committed to NU and wants to study neuroscience on the pre-medical track. She said posting on the class of 2027’s Instagram account and attending Wildcat Days, the spring programming for admitted students, made her feel like part of the community.

“Immediately after posting (on the Instagram account), everyone tries to follow you and tries to connect with you,” Ogun said. “I even got put into a NU Nigerian students group chat. Everyone seems excited to get to know one another.”

Anna Humphrey, an incoming student from Portland, Oregon, plans to study physics and astronomy and French. She said she thinks NU is the perfect blend of community and academic rigor. 

She added she’s both excited and scared to meet students who are driven and talented at NU. Humphrey, who attends a private Christian high school, said attending a secular university will be a “big change,” but she looks forward to meeting people of other backgrounds. 

“I’m excited to be exposed to a lot more different perspectives, which I think is going to be a real asset to me,” Humphrey said.

Like Humphrey, Liam Melvin, an incoming Bienen student from Rockford, Illinois, said he looks forward to being challenged by his peers.

Melvin plans to major in trombone performance. He said he chose NU in part because he wanted to be able to explore his other interests, like musicology and film. Multidisciplinary studies wouldn’t be as readily available at a music conservatory, he said.

“Northwestern students seem to thrive off being multitalented and multiinterested, and that was something I wanted to be a part of,” Melvin said. “I’m looking forward to being pushed to my musical potential by my peers at Bienen.”

Maya Ramaswamy, an incoming biomedical engineering major from Wilmette, said she has interdisciplinary interests.

Ramaswamy is drawn to NU’s quarter system, which she said will allow her to pursue a range of passions, from stem cells to pottery. She said she’s particularly interested in limb regeneration.

“We could be lizards, just regenerating hands, which is pretty insane,” she said. “This is a really good time to be at the forefront of that, so biomedical engineering felt like a good fit.”

Because both her parents are from India, Ramaswamy said she felt like her family’s “guinea pig” for the American college application process. Her admission to NU was a weight off her shoulders, she said.

When Fonseca opened her decision letter, she said she didn’t believe it at first.

She said she was especially grateful for the acceptance after the hardships she and her family have experienced. During her application process, her mother was going through breast cancer treatment, but Fonseca said she felt she had to keep pushing despite the emotional toll it took on her.

“When I opened (the letter) with my family, it was so special because we all had gone through such a hard year, and it was kind of everybody’s dream come true,” Fonseca said. “It was beautiful. I will never forget that moment.”

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