Northwestern University Alumni

In 2009, incoming members of the Class of 2013 helped blaze a brand new Northwestern tradition just hours after moving in. Holding candles, first-year and transfer students marched through Arnold Weber Arch—Northwestern’s iconic entry gate located at the corner of Sheridan Road and Chicago Avenue in Evanston—past their families to symbolically step onto the campus where they would spend their college years.

While students no longer carry candles—the event was moved to the morning after move-in day in 2011—March Through the Arch creates a unique opportunity to welcome new students to campus in a way that brings the whole undergraduate class together and has become one of the most recognizable traditions of Wildcat Welcome, Northwestern’s orientation week.

Led by the Northwestern University Wildcat Marching Band, the new students and their peer advisers parade in purple Northwestern T-shirts past throngs of cheering families, faculty, staff and students. Their procession takes them past beloved campus landmarks, including University Hall and the Rock, to Deering Meadow, where they are formally welcomed by University and Northwestern Alumni Association leaders. Then it’s time for “Kiss ‘n’ Bye,” when students bid farewell to their families.

Northwestern’s Qatar campus has participated in the tradition since 2009, too. New students had marched through several purple and white balloon arches until this year, when they were able to walk through a replica of Weber Arch.

Graduating seniors bring the tradition full circle. They join their class for one last time before Commencement to retrace those first steps onto campus during March Back Through the Arch.

The 10th Annual March Through the Arch will take place on the Evanston campus on September 22.