是一所座落于美国东北部马萨诸塞州的波士顿市中心地区的私立研究型大学，近年来在北卡罗来纳州夏洛特和华盛顿州的西雅图市建造了新校区。东北大学成立于1898年，由八个学院组成，有65个系具备本科学历授予资质、125个专业提供了研究生教育，可以授予硕士、博士和职业教育学位。 东北大学的教学具有鲜明的学术与实务结合的特色，合作专业(co-op)课程使东北大学的授课具有实践性的突破意义，在2010、2011、2013、2015年的《普林斯顿评论》评选出的“最佳实习/职业服务”大学中名列第一位。US News and World Report中东北大学2017年本科综合排名全美第39名。
1898年，基督教青年会在波士顿创办了东北大学的前身“青年夜校”，并于同年十月三日开始授课。由于波士顿地区迅猛增长的人口对高质量课程的需求，成立仅仅几年，青年夜校就开设了多个学科的课程，覆盖了法律、工程、金融等多个专业。1909年，学校给位全日制大学。1913学校搬迁到了现在的地址：Huntington Avenue。1916年，青年夜校获得了本科学位授予资格。1922年，学校更名为“东北大学”。此后的几年中，学校规模迅速扩大，购买了Huntington Avenue的大片区域作并入校园。
1935年，东北大学开设了艺术学院。
1937年，东北大学董事会成立。1948年，东北大学脱离基督教青年会，成为一个独立运营的大学。
二战之后，东北大学又新建了多个学院：自然科学院、教育学院（1953）、成人教育学院（1960）、医学院（1964）、法学院（1967）、商学院、工学院、计算机学院（1982）等。
企业界
Richard Egan
Bob Davis - CEO and Founder, Lycos
Nikesh Arora – SVP and Chief Business Officer, Google
Biz Stone – Co-Founder of Twitter
David Bannon – co-founder and COO, Headwall Photonics
Robert Brooks – founder and CEO, Brooks Fibre Properties
George Chamillard- former CEO, Teradyne, Inc.
Jeff Clarke – former EVP, Hewlett-Packard; CEO, Travelport
Jeff Cooper – COO and co-founder, EPOX-Z Corporation
Richard Egan — co-founder, EMC
Shawn Fanning – founder, Napster
Jerald G. Fishman – CEO, Analog Devices
Bob Graham- former EVP, Sun Microsystems
Dave House – Chairman, Brocade Communications Systems, Inc.
George Kariotis- founder, Alpha Industries
Roger Marino – co-founder, EMC and former part-owner, Pittsburgh Penguins
John McEleney – CEO, SolidWorks Corporation
Alan McKim – CEO and Founder, Clean Harbors
Edward McMahon – President and CEO, Epec
Srinath Narayanan – principal, Canaccord Adams
Bill Norman – founder and COO, Intellisis
William O’Shea- EVP, Lucent Technologies
Kevin Roche – EVP, Getronics
Michael Sherman – founder, president and CEO, AES Corporation
Sy Sternberg — chairman and CEO, New York Life Insurance Company
James Waters- VP, Coveo
林孝贤-香港丽新集团执行董事
Ernest Axelbank - VP Engineering, Accedo
政治界
Jayson P. Ahern – Deputy Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
George F. Archambault – Pharmacy Liaison Officer for the United States Public Health Service
Demetrius J. Atsalis – Member of the Mass. House of Representatives (served 1998 – present)
Russell Holmes – Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (served 2011 - present)
Burt Buchman - former member of Melrose and Tyngsboro, MA School Committees - MASC Lifetime Achievement 2012 (served 1994 - 2013)
Thomas Calter – Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (served 2007 – present)
Christie Carpino – Member of the Connecticut House of Representatives
Cheryl A. Coakley-Rivera – Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (served 1998 – present)
David Chu – Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (1997–2004) and the 9th and 10th National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China
Mo Cowan – U.S. Senator of Massachusetts
William Delgado – Illinois General Assembly Senator
Harold Daniel Donohue – Member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1947–1974)
Patrick Duddy – U.S. Ambassador
Richard Egan – U.S. Ambassador
David Ferriero – 10th Archivist of the United States
Thomas Finneran – Former Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (served 1996–2004)
Gordon D. Fox – Majority Leader of the Rhode Island House of Representatives (served 1992 – present)
Peter Franchot – Comptroller of Maryland
Maggie Hassan – Governor-Elect of New Hampshire
Edward Jackamonis – speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly
James Franklin Jeffrey – U.S. Ambassador
Lyndon LaRouche – Perennial presidential candidate
Hadassah Lieberman – Wife of Connecticut senator Joseph Lieberman
John O. Pastore – Governor of Rhode Island
Ari Porth – Member of the Florida House of Representatives
Karen Spilka – Member of the Massachusetts State Senate
Wallace Stickney – Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency under President George H. W. Bush
Leslie Winner – North Carolina State Senator
法律界
Margot Botsford – Justice, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Linda Dalianis – Justice, New Hampshire Supreme Court
Dana Fabe – Chief Justice, Alaska Supreme Court
Edward Hennessey – Justice, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Peter T. Zarella- Justice, Connecticut Supreme Court
科学界
Hans Baumann, inventor and engineer
George D. Behrakis - Inventor of Tylenol
Amy Bishop – Former professor, killer
Hans R. Camenzind – Inventor of the 555 timer IC
Richard P. Gabriel – Expert on the Lisp programming language
Gregory Jarvis – Astronaut
Eugene F. Lally - Aerospace engineer, photographer, entrepreneur
Alvin Joseph Melveger – noted scientist specializing in physical chemistry, spectroscopy, biomaterials, polymers and other disciplines
Yale Patt – Engineer
Albert Sacco – Astronaut
军事界
Mark P. Fitzgerald – Admiral; former Commander, Allied Joint Force Command Naples and Commander, Naval Forces Europe and Naval Forces Africa for the United States Navy
Richard I. Neal – United States Marine Corps four-star general (served as Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1996 to 1998)
William Thornton, Colonel, U.S. Air Force, White House Fellow
新闻业与大众传播
Ernie Anastos - New York City TV news anchorman
Eddie Andelman – Sports radio talk show host (MBA Degree)
Michelle Bonner – ESPNEWS/Sports Center anchor
Fred Cusick – Sportscaster
Richard Daniels – former President, The Boston Globe
Nat Hentoff — Contributing editor, The New Yorker Magazine
Dan Mason – Radio Host
Will McDonough — Sportswriter, Boston Globe
Don Orsillo – TV broadcaster
Walter V. Robinson – Investigative Journalist, Boston Globe
艺术与娱乐文化
Martín Espada — poet
Tony CIampa — poet
Jane Curtin — actress, comedienne, and founding member of Saturday Night Live
Damien Fahey — a former host of the MTV program TRL
Mohammed Saeed Harib – Creator of Freej
Aisha Kahlil — Dancer, singer
Courtney Hunt – Writer and director, whose film Frozen River was nominated for an Academy Award
Alex Garcia — Food Network chef
Patrice O’Neal — Comedian and actor
Jennifer Toof — "Toastee" from VH1’s Flavor of Love, Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School, and I Love Money
Terry Carter – Actor, Sgt. Joe Broadhurst in McCloud and Colonel Tigh on the original Battlestar Galactica
David Andelman – CEO, Phantom Gourmet
Earle Brown – Composer, developed open-form scores
Beverly Johnson – Supermodel and actress
Barbara Kopple — Documentary filmmaker
Meredith Garniss – American visual artist and landscape painter
Peter Orner – American fiction writer
Carla Cook – Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist
Diana Lemieux – Freelance photographer
Jillian Wheeler – American singer/songwriter
Wendy Williams – Radio/TV talk show host
Al Barile – singer/guitarist for hardcore punk band SS Decontrol
Colin Moriarty - IGN senior editor, youtuber, podcast host.
学术界
William M. Fowler – Author, Professor, and Former Director of the Massachusetts Historical Society
Dean Tong - Author and consultant
体坛
José Juan Barea
Shawn James
Carlos Peña
Jocko Thompson
Ed Barry – 1946–47 Boston Bruins, National Hockey League (NHL)
Harry Barnes — 1969 San Diego Rockets, NBA
José Juan Barea — Minnesota Timberwolves
Sandy Beadle – 1980–81 Winnipeg Jets, NHL
Randy Bucyk – 1985–86 Montreal Canadiens, 1987–88 Calgary Flames, NHL
Joe Callahan – 1939–40 Boston Bees, MLB
Art Chisholm – 1960–61 Boston Bruins, NHL
Rob Cowie – 1994–96 Los Angeles Kings, NHL
Kendall Coyne - Silver medalist on the Sochi 2014 United States Women’s National Ice Hockey Team
Jim Fahey — NHL defenseman, New Jersey Devils
Fernie Flaman — NHL Hockey Hall of Famer
Scott Gruhl – 1987–88 Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL
Amber Ferreira – Professional Triathlete
"Wild" Bill Hunnefield — Major League Baseball (MLB) 1926–31 Chicago White Sox, 1931 Cleveland Indians, Boston Braves, and New York Giants
Shawn James, professional basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv
Sean Jones — National Football League (NFL) Los Angeles Raiders, Houston Oilers, Green Bay Packers
Steven Langton – Olympian, 2010 Vancouver, 2014 Sochi, Bobsled
Reggie Lewis — Boston Celtics
Dave Leitao – college basketball coach
Pat Mason – college baseball coach at Virginia Tech
Dan McGillis — NHL defenseman San Jose Sharks, Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins
Michael Ryan — NHL left winger, Buffalo Sabres
Perry Moss — 1986 Washington Bullets, Philadelphia 76ers, 1987 Golden State Warriors
Chris Nilan — Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins, New York Rangers
Adam Ottavino – 1st round pick in 2006 MLB Draft, pitcher for St. Louis Cardinals (2010) and Colorado Rockies (2012–present)
Charlie Paulk – NBA, 1968–1970 Milwaukee Bucks, 1970–1971 Cincinnati Royals, 1971 Chicago Bulls, 1971–1972 New York Knicks
Carlos Peña — MLB first baseman/outfielder, Oakland Athletics, Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays
Bruce Racine — NHL goaltender, St. Louis Blues
Dan Ross — NFL Cincinnati Bengals and Super Bowl record setter.
Florence Schelling - Goaltender for the Switzerland’s Women’s Ice Hockey Team in 2006, 2010, and 2014. Led the Swiss team to a bronze medal finish in 2014, and was named MVP of the tournament.
Brian Sullivan – NHL, 1992–93 New Jersey Devils
Josh Heinrich Taves – NFL football player, 2000–02, Oakland Raiders and Carolina Panthers
Jocko Thompson – MLB pitcher, 1948–51 Philadelphia Phillies
Johnny Tobin — MLB, 1932 New York Giants
Joe Vitale - NHL, Center for Pittsburgh Penguins 2011- Current
Kurt Walker – NHL, 1975–78 Toronto Maple Leafs
Rick Weitzman — 1968, World Champion Boston Celtics
Keith Willis — NFL Pittsburgh Steelers
Hillary Witt - Assistant Coach for the United States Women’s National Ice Hockey Team in the Sochi 2014 Olympics
George Yankowski – MLB, 1942 Philadelphia Athletics, 1949 Chicago White Sox