Other · DOL Form 5500 · 2022
Northwestern University Retirement Plan
Data updated 2026-08-25
- $3.5B
- Total assets Very large vs avg
- 9,465
- Participants Very large workforce
- 100th
- Percentile by assets National rank
- $371,259
- Avg per participant High balance/head
Official DOL plan name: Northwestern University Retirement Plan · Sponsored by Northwestern University · Illinois · Educational Services
$3.5B in assets, 9,465 participants
Northwestern University's Northwestern University Retirement Plan reported $3.5B in total assets and 9,465 participants in its 2022 DOL Form 5500 filing, ranking in the 100th percentile by assets among filed plans. Figures are as reported by the plan sponsor to the Department of Labor, not audited or endorsed by PlainRetire.
- #4,009 in Educational Services (4,024 peers)
Coverage in Illinois
Northwestern University Retirement Plan covers 9,465 participants in Illinois, 12x the typical Illinois plan (state average ~779 per filing). Assets: $3.5B.
- #4,009
- in Educational Services (4,024 peers)
- -14.0%
- assets change YoY
- 35×
- vs typical plan assets (national mean)
The plan reported a net loss of $570M for the year, a single-year figure driven by markets and benefit payments, not a measure of plan health.
Northwestern University Retirement Plan's outsized position by total assets
Northwestern University Retirement Plan vs every filed plan by assets
End-of-year total assets · plan year 2022 · DOL Form 5500
$3,513,964,211 Highest reported value at or above every one of 139,123 filed plans
Dashed line + filled bar = this entry, among filed plans.
Source U.S. Department of Labor Form 5500 filings (EBSA) · plan year 2022
Northwestern University Retirement Plan's large-plan peer group by participant headcount
Plan-year 2022 Form 5500 filings with a reported participant count, partitioned by headcount band, not by assets. Northwestern University Retirement Plan lands in the large band (9,465 participants).
DOL schedule card
Filing strip 362167817 · Northwestern University PY 2022 · Other
Northwestern University Retirement Plan · $3.5B · 9,465 · 100th
- ASSETS $3.5B
- PCT 9,465
- EIN 100th
- RANK Other
- PHOTO near Columbia University Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan
- IND ind #4009
Stamps derive from this plan's Form 5500 line items (assets, participants, type, EIN, cohort placement) - not a quality rating of the sponsor. Read with Educational Services retirement plans → · Plans in Illinois →
Northwestern University Retirement Plan in the asset neighbourhood
Illinois filing particulars
| Total Assets (Beginning of Year) | $4.1B |
|---|---|
| Net Assets (End of Year) | $3.5B |
| Net Income | -$570M |
| Employer EIN | 362167817 |
| Plan Effective Date | 1920-09-12 |
| Filing Status | FILING RECEIVED |
Sponsor Plan History (Northwestern University)
Sponsor-wide plan assets over time
All Northwestern University plans reported in each filing year
- Latest sponsor-wide plan assets
- $5.7B 26.835153425030896% vs 2022
- 2024 filing year
| Year | Plans | Participants | Total Assets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 3 | 25,039 | $4.5B |
| 2023 | 3 | 21,775 | $5.1B |
| 2024 | 3 | 21,547 | $5.7B |
Nearby Other Plans in Illinois
Peer Other plans, same state, same plan type, ranked by total assets.
- Washington University Retirement Savings Plan $5.9B · 15,925
- The University of Chicago Contributory Retirement Plan $3.1B · 4,552
- Northshore University Healthsystem Tax Deferred Annuity Plan $1.8B · 13,159
- The University of Chicago Supplemental Retirement Plan $1.5B · 7,855
- Argonne National Laboratory 403(b) Employee Retirement Plan $1.4B · 3,664
Scale composition for Northwestern University Retirement Plan
Northwestern University Retirement Plan reports $3.5B in end-of-year assets across 9,465 participants (0.029% of the $12.3T held by all Form 5500 filers in the national rollup , and 0.010% of 93,925,755 covered participants) - about $371,259 per participant (2.7x the national average assets-per-participant) . Net income for plan year 2022 was -$570M.
This plan identity (EIN 362167817, plan #001) has 3 Form 5500 filings on file from 2022 to 2024 , with end-of-year assets moving from $3.5B to $4.4B (+26.5%) while covered participants moved from 9,465 to 9,328 . Single-year sparse filers cannot show that trail.
| Plan year | Participants | EOY assets | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 9,465 | $3.5B | This page |
| 2023 | 9,440 | $4.0B | Open filing |
| 2024 · index core | 9,328 | $4.4B | Open filing |
The same sponsor also keeps 2 other index-core plans on PlainRetire:
- Northwestern University Retirement Plan (Other, $4.4B, 9,328 participants)
- Northwestern University Voluntary Savings Plan (Other, $1.2B, 12,219 participants)
Northwestern University Retirement Plan's out-of-state Other peers by assets and headcount
Outside Illinois, the nearest Other by assets is Columbia University Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan in NY ($3.5B); by covered participants it is Southeastern Carpenters and Millwrights Pension Plan in TN (9,451 participants). Same-state nearby plans are listed separately above.
Closest by plan assets
Nearest other-state filings by tot_assets_eoy ($3.5B here).
- Columbia University Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan (NY) $3.5B · 16,817
- Upmc 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan (PA) $3.5B · 75,307
- Vanderbilt University Medical Center Retirement Plan (TN) $3.4B · 28,507
- Nyu Grossman School of Medicine Retirement Plan for Members of the Faculty, Professional Research Staff and Administration (NY) $3.4B · 5,523
Similar participant headcount
Nearest other-state filings by covered participants (9,465 participants); asset peers above are excluded.
- Southeastern Carpenters and Millwrights Pension Plan (TN) 9,451 · 14 off
- Nationwide Children's Hospital Inc 403(b) Tax Sheltered Annuity Plan (OH) 9,522 · 57 off
- The Cooper Health System 403(b) Plan (NJ) 9,570 · 105 off
- Northeastern University Retirement Plan (MA) 9,310 · 155 off
DOL Form 5500 plan year 2022. Asset totals can differ widely at the same headcount; neither axis is a quality rating.