Federal contractor · EVANSTON, IL

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY received $1.5M in federal contract obligations in FY2026, on 7 awards (+19% vs FY2025). Since FY2017: $6.8M. Its largest customer was National Institutes of Health ($1.3M). It also received $10.8M in federal grants and other assistance in FY2026.

Obligations · FY2026
$1.5M
New awards
7
Sole-source
11%
Single offer
56%
UEI
EXZVPWZBLUE8
Other than small businessNonprofitEducational institution
Open in the contracts explorerRelationship graph

Company family

Grouped from reported parent companies (UEI) and, where marked, AI judgments that two records name the same organization or group.

Part of the NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY company family: 2 registered entities, $9.1M in FY2026 together. See the family

  1. NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITYEVANSTON, IL · Family page
    $7.5M

AI-inferred: entity-match@1 · Analisa AI · 2026-09-30

Spending by fiscal year

Obligations per federal fiscal year (October–September).

  1. -3.7MFY2017
  2. 462.1KFY2018
  3. 141.1KFY2019
  4. 713.1KFY2020
  5. 1.6MFY2021
  6. 833.9KFY2022
  7. 1.9MFY2023
  8. 2MFY2024
  9. 1.3MFY2025
  10. 1.5MFY2026

Top buying agencies

Obligations in FY2026.

  1. National Institutes of Health$1.3M89%
    4 awards
  2. Department of Veterans Affairs$161.8K11%
    2 awards
  3. Food and Drug Administration-$1,1010.0%
    1 awards

What was bought · Where the work was performed

Obligations in FY2026.

What was bought

  1. Research & development$1.4M90%
  2. Construction & real property$149.1K9.9%

Where the work was performed

  1. Cook County, IL$1.5M100%

Integrity signals

Shares of the year's obligations, next to the country's.

  • Low competition67%
    US 39% · $1M
  • Sole-source awards11%
    US 30% · $161.8K
  • Single-offer competitions56%
    US 8.7% · $842.4K
  • Urgency justifications0.0%
    US 5.1% · $0

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Largest awards

  1. TASK AREA A SHALL ENCOMPASS ANNUAL FOLLOW-UP OF COHORT MEMBERS, CLINICAL EVENTS INVESTIGATIONS, STUDY OPERATIONS, AND DATA ANALYSIS AND MANUSCRIPT WRITING. IF IMPLEMENTED, TASK A.1 WILL PROVIDE FUNDING FOR THE STEERING COMMITTEE CHAIR.$3.2M
    National Institutes of Health· Cook County, IL· Research & development· Dec 19, 2019 – Jun 3, 2026· 75N92020F00001
  2. CORONARY ARTERY RISK DEVELOPMENT IN YOUNG ADULTS (CARDIA) STUDY - CHICAGO FIELD CENTER$2.8M
    National Institutes of Health· Cook County, IL· Research & development· Jul 11, 2023 – Jun 18, 2026· 75N92023F00001
  3. CORONARY ARTERY RISK DEVELOPMENT IN YOUNG ADULTS (CARDIA) STUDY - CHICAGO FIELD CENTER$842.4K
    National Institutes of Health· Cook County, IL· Research & development· Mar 13, 2026 – Mar 13, 2026· 75N92026F00001
  4. MULTI-ETHNIC STUDY OF ATHEROSCLEROSIS (MESA) FIELD CENTER (FC) - TASK AREA B EXAM 7$829.7K
    National Institutes of Health· Cook County, IL· Research & development· May 18, 2021 – Sep 11, 2026· 75N92021F00001
  5. PARKING SERVICES$642.4K
    Department of Veterans Affairs· Cook County, IL· Construction & real property· Oct 1, 2022 – Mar 17, 2026· 36C25223C0459
  6. MASS SPECTROMETRY ANALYSIS OF SARS-COV-2 ANTIBODY REPERTOIRE IN 145 HUMAN PLASMA SAMPLES$76.7K
    Food and Drug Administration· Cook County, IL· Professional services· Aug 27, 2024 – Jan 22, 2026· 75F40124P00335
  7. DR MUNSHI RESEARCH MOUSE HOUSING ESTIMATE AT 30 CAGES PER DAY AND RODENT ANETHSIA$51.1K
    Department of Veterans Affairs· Cook County, IL· Research & development· May 2, 2023 – Apr 13, 2026· 36C25223C0050

Federal grants & assistance received

Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY received $10.8M in federal assistance in FY2026, on 309 actions (4 new awards), −90% vs FY2025. Its largest program was 47.041 · Engineering ($1.6M).

Assistance · FY2026
$10.8M
New awards
4
Actions
309
Since FY2021
$813M

Assistance by fiscal year

  1. 191.4MFY2021
  2. 162.3MFY2022
  3. 180MFY2023
  4. 156.1MFY2024
  5. 112.4MFY2025
  6. 10.8MFY2026

By type

  1. Grants$10.8M100%

Top programs

  1. 47.041 · Engineering$1.6M15%
  2. 93.397 · Cancer Centers Support Grants$1.6M15%
  3. 12.300 · Basic and Applied Scientific Research$1.5M13%
  4. 12.431 · Basic Scientific Research$1.1M9.9%
  5. 81.049 · Office of Science Financial Assistance Program$959.5K8.9%
  6. 12.800 · Air Force Defense Research Sciences Program$867.2K8.0%
  7. 12.351 · Scientific Research - Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction$825K7.6%
  8. 93.853 · Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders$609.9K5.6%

Awarding agencies

  1. National Institutes of Health$2.8M26%
    Department of Health and Human Services
  2. National Science Foundation$2.6M24%
  3. Department of the Navy$1.3M12%
    Department of Defense
  4. Department of the Army$1.1M9.9%
    Department of Defense
  5. Department of Energy$958.9K8.9%
  6. Department of the Air Force$867.2K8.0%
    Department of Defense
  7. Defense Threat Reduction Agency$825K7.6%
    Department of Defense
  8. Department of Education$658.3K6.1%

Largest awards

  1. RECOVERY; NEW: RECOVERY ACT - CENTER FOR INTEGRATED TRAINING IN FAR-FROM-EQUILIBRIUM AND ADAPTIVE MATERIALS (CITFAM) -- EFRC; PI -$63M
    81.049 · Office of Science Financial Assistance Program· Department of Energy· Project grant· Jul 16, 2021 – Aug 19, 2026· DESC0000989
  2. NATIONAL RESOURCE FOR TRANSLATIONAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL PROTEOMICS$13.6M
    93.310 · Trans-NIH Research Support· National Institutes of Health· Project grant· Jun 13, 2021 – Mar 26, 2026· P41GM108569
  3. HYDROGEN IN ENERGY AND INFORMATION SCIENCES (HEISS)$10.4M
    81.049 · Office of Science Financial Assistance Program· Department of Energy· Project grant· Sep 29, 2022 – May 20, 2026· DESC0023450
  4. A FAMILY-GENETIC STUDY OF AUTISM AND FRAGILE X SYNDROME$10.1M
    93.242 · Mental Health Research Grants· National Institutes of Health· Project grant· Jul 16, 2021 – Aug 28, 2026· R01MH091131
  5. SAGE GRANDE: AN OPEN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TESTBED FOR EDGE COMPUTING AND INTELLIGENT SENSING -LANGUAGE-BASED GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL…$9.3M
    47.070 · Computer and Information Science and Engineering· National Science Foundation· Cooperative agreement· Feb 20, 2025 – Apr 1, 2026· 2436842
  6. NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR CHROMATIN NANOIMAGING IN CANCER (NU-CCNIC) - OVERALL: PROJECT SUMMARY CANCER STEM CELLS (CSCS) PLAY A…$8.4M
    93.397 · Cancer Centers Support Grants· National Institutes of Health· Cooperative agreement· Dec 10, 2021 – Sep 4, 2026· U54CA268084

Source: Federal financial assistance transactions (Financial Assistance Broker Submission) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 8, 2026, loaded Oct 8, 2026 · FY2021–FY2026.

Subawards

Matched by Unique Entity ID: the first-tier subawards this organization reported as a prime recipient, and those primes reported paying it.

As a prime: who it pays · FY2026

  • Sub-grants: $13.7M (72 subawards)

48 sub-recipients

  1. THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO$2.6M19%
    CHICAGO, IL · 4 subawards
  2. MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY$916.1K6.7%
    CAMBRIDGE, MA · 2 subawards
  3. TEXAS A&M ENGINEERING EXPERIMENT STATION$821.8K6.0%
    COLLEGE STATION, TX · 1 subaward
  4. CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY$675K4.9%
    PITTSBURGH, PA · 1 subaward
  5. UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS$657.3K4.8%
    URBANA, IL · 3 subawards
  6. THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY$646.1K4.7%
    STANFORD, CA · 2 subawards
  7. THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO$511.3K3.7%
    BOULDER, CO · 4 subawards
  8. FLORIDA A & M UNIVERSITY$499.2K3.6%
    TALLAHASSEE, FL · 1 subaward
  9. COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY$484.3K3.5%
    FORT COLLINS, CO · 2 subawards
  10. LUCI MOBILITY, INC.$468.4K3.4%
    WHEAT RIDGE, CO · 1 subaward

As a sub-recipient: who pays it · FY2026

  • Sub-grants: $11.2M (44 subawards)

29 primes

  1. THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO$1.6M14%
    CHICAGO, IL · 4 subawards
  2. THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY$993.3K8.8%
    BALTIMORE, MD · 1 subaward
  3. THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK$796.4K7.1%
    NEW YORK, NY · 1 subaward
  4. WILLIAM MARSH RICE UNIVERSITY$680K6.1%
    HOUSTON, TX · 3 subawards
  5. UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN SYSTEM$641.9K5.7%
    MADISON, WI · 1 subaward
  6. GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY (THE)$602.6K5.4%
    WASHINGTON, DC · 2 subawards
  7. MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY$546.9K4.9%
    CAMBRIDGE, MA · 1 subaward
  8. CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY$520.5K4.6%
    PITTSBURGH, PA · 4 subawards
  9. UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA$511.3K4.6%
    GAINESVILLE, FL · 2 subawards
  10. ILLINOIS EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY AND$503K4.5%
    SPRINGFIELD, IL · 1 subaward

By fiscal year

  • FY2021: $26M paid out · $23.1M received
  • FY2022: $25.5M paid out · $35.4M received
  • FY2023: $38.1M paid out · $27.3M received
  • FY2024: $65.6M paid out · $50.1M received
  • FY2025: $25.7M paid out · $19.6M received
  • FY2026: $13.7M paid out · $11.2M received

Primes report first-tier subawards of $30,000 or more themselves, and many go unreported (GAO-24-106214). Reporting moved from FSRS to SAM.gov in March 2025 and fewer sub-contracts have been reported since. Amounts are what primes reported; they are never added to prime award totals.

Source: Subawards (first-tier sub-contracts and sub-grants reported under FFATA) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov (reports filed in SAM.gov, formerly FSRS)), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026 · Subawards loaded from FY2021.

Teaming partners

Companies this company reported paying, primes that reported paying it, from FFATA subaward reports.

Companies it pays

505 companies · $733.9M reported

  1. UCHICAGO ARGONNE, LLC$58.6M
    CHICAGO, IL · 264 subawards · Scientific research and development services
  2. THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY$41.1M
    STANFORD, CA · 58 subawards
  3. UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH - OF THE COMMONWEALTH SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION$32.3M
    PITTSBURGH, PA · 70 subawards

Primes that pay it

221 companies · $437.5M reported

  1. UCHICAGO ARGONNE, LLC$21.5M
    CHICAGO, IL · 57 subawards
  2. ILLINOIS EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY AND$19.6M
    SPRINGFIELD, IL · 4 subawards
  3. REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA$17.6M
    MINNEAPOLIS, MN · 33 subawards

Showing the top 3 of each list. Open the profile for potential partners and the full lists.

Primes report first-tier subawards of $30,000 or more themselves, and many go unreported (GAO-24-106214). Reporting moved from FSRS to SAM.gov in March 2025 and fewer sub-contracts have been reported since. Amounts are what primes reported; they are never added to prime award totals.

Source: Subawards (first-tier sub-contracts and sub-grants reported under FFATA) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov (reports filed in SAM.gov, formerly FSRS)), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026 · Subawards loaded from 2021.

Competitors

Companies that win from the same buyers in the same markets: obligations by agency and industry compared over the last three fiscal years.

Compared on 14 markets (agency × industry), FY2024–FY2026.

  1. LA JOLLA INSTITUTE FOR IMMUNOLOGY$17.8M+25% in FY2026
    LA JOLLA, CA · 69% of this company's obligations are in markets they both serveNational Institutes of Health · Scientific research and development services
  2. FUNDACION INCIENSA$19.3M−86% in FY2026
    LA UNION, CRI · 71% of this company's obligations are in markets they both serveNational Institutes of Health · Scientific research and development services
  3. THE ADMINISTRATORS OF TULANE EDUCATIONAL FUND$28M−42% in FY2026
    NEW ORLEANS, LA · 2 entities · 83% of this company's obligations are in markets they both serveNational Institutes of Health · Scientific research and development servicesNavy · Colleges, universities, and professional schoolsArmy · Scientific research and development services

Showing the top 3 of 25 competitors. Open the profile for the full list.

Who sells to the same buyers in the same markets, not who wins against whom on a given contract. Prime contract obligations by the agency and NAICS code of each award; subawards are never added. A company is a family of legal entities, joined by parent UEI or, in part, by an AI reading of names.

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026 · FY2024–FY2026.

Lobbying and PAC activity

Organizations in House lobbying disclosures and FEC records whose names an AI judgment matched to this company. Those records carry no identifier shared with contracts, so every match is by name.

Across the company family of NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY (2 recipients).

Matched organizations

  • NORTHWESTERN UNIVAI match · 100%
  • Northwestern UniversityAI match · 100%
Lobbying · 2025
$1.3M
12 reports
Lobbying · 2023–2026
$2.9M
$2.9M in its own reports

Lobbying by year

  1. 2023$406K
    8 reports
  2. 2024$1M
    10 reports
  3. 2025$1.3M
    12 reports
  4. 2026$212K
    4 reports

Top issues

  1. Education25 reports
  2. Defense21 reports
  3. Budget and appropriations14 reports
  4. Science and technology14 reports
  5. Taxation and the Internal Revenue Code12 reports
  6. Sports and athletics6 reports
  7. Immigration3 reports
  8. Health issues2 reports

Who was contacted

  1. U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES31 reports
  2. U.S. SENATE31 reports
  3. Executive Office of the President (EOP)2 reports
  4. Education - Dept of1 reports
  5. Justice - Dept of (DOJ)1 reports

Houses of Congress and federal agencies the reports list as contacted (a report names every one for all its issues).

Lobbying firms hired

  1. Harbinger Strategies, LLC$1.4M
    9 reports
  2. Miller Strategies, LLC$240K
    4 reports
  3. Strategic Marketing Innovations$200K
    7 reports

Registrants who are individuals are counted, not named.

Lobbying amounts are the filers' own good-faith estimates on quarterly LD-2 reports (the law asks for amounts rounded to $10,000; under $5,000 need not be itemized), latest amendment only. When an organization files its own report, it replaces what outside firms report for it that quarter. Matches are by name. Lobbying and political giving are legal and public: they show engagement with government, not influence over any award. Correlation is not influence: these organizations' lobbying and their contracts are shown side by side, and nothing here implies either affected the other.

Source: Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026 · 2023–2026.

Source: Committees, candidates and committee contributions to candidates (Federal Election Commission), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026 · 2026, 2024, 2022.

Matches: Analisa AI name judgments (entity-match@1), updated Sep 30, 2026.

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026.