trying to help DS with some decision making.
accepted into engineering at each.
we know they are all coop schools.
Has anyone had to make decisions in past years regarding these schools?
Any advice re: strengths and weaknesses of each?
Thanks for the help.
Purdue is co-op optional as opposed to northeastern where it is required for graduation.
That said, there is a high number of Purdue students that co-op and wonderful support.
Purdue has one of the biggest job fairs in the country. They brought 1000 companies to campus last year. It’s very much a career readiness program.
My D personally liked having the flexibility. For students not totally sold on their major, doing summer internships vs co-op can give more varied experiences with a multitude of companies.
As it turned out, she is co-oping though so if you have any specific questions, I’m happy to try to answer.
Purdue is not a coop school in that it does not require coops. Most students choose either summer internships or to just graduate in 4 years. However, it has an excellent coop program and a very strong Professional Practices office along with STEM career fares for those who choose that route. They offer 3 and 5 term tracks. My D did a 5 term coop at Purdue and the experience was excellent for her. She loved Purdue, did well, and was well employed upon graduation. Perhaps a disadvantage compared to a school that requires coops would be that you might have to be more aware of when certain classes are available. My D never had a problem getting a class but she did have to juggle certain courses. I would think Purdue would have a very different feel than Northeastern being rural and in the midwest. The Engineering College is essentially in the center of campus and that is something she really liked. I don’t know enough about Drexel to make even that kind of judgement. Good luck.
Cost difference is certainly a consideration for most families.
if costs the same - how would they compare?
The biggest difference is coop. The Northeastern curriculum is built around coop. Students do not have to worry about “making up” what they missed while on coop jobs. Purdue has optional coop. I am not sure how many Purdue engineering students choose to do it. And contrary to what some still believe, at Northeastern with two 6 month coops you will still graduate in 4 years.
The engineering major may matter too. Being in Boston would give easy local access to many high tech coop and career jobs (depending on the engineering major).
There’s a parent of a current Purdue coop student that I’m sure will be along shortly. My D is there but going the 4 year/internship route - MechE/Manufacturing with Entrepreneurship. She didn’t apply to either of your other two schools so I can’t help with selection among them, but can answer any specific questions.
She’s very happy there - it’s been a rigorous, challenging program, but she’s doing well, quite happy, and very pleased with her internship this summer. She’s also headed to Japan this spring as part of their extensive global program.
(Edit - looks like she already responded in your duplicate thread in the Purdue forum).
My D initially was looking at coop but decide to stick with traditional 4 year and internships. She had no issue being sold on her major, but wanted experience with different companies before graduation.
Job preparation, job fairs, etc., were very effective - lots of resume, interview, etc., preparation, lots of companies/interviews, and two summer offers by Thanksgiving, one of which was her top choice while interviewing.
As noted in your other thread, I can’t compare the two or three schools you mention, but can answer Purdue-specific questions.
DS accepted to both for engineering.
Does anyone know how they compare/ contrast?
Interested in how the schools compare in general and regarding engineering programs and coops.
DS accepted to both.
Other than city/ rural difference, how would you make a decision between these two?
Anyone dealt with this choice before?
Thanks
I would definitely go with Northeastern or Purdue over Drexel. I’d only consider that one if it cost significantly less or you needed to be near Philadelphia for some reason.
My D is doing a 3 term coop at Purdue. For her it was the best of both worlds because she still had two free summers for internships elsewhere.
The office of professional practice is amazing and my D has a special co-op advisor to make sure she’s getting the courses she needs to graduate in 8 semesters. He’s been super knowledgeable. She also has professional practice workshops leading up to starting.
There is a prescribed time to be away from campus so course sequencing isn’t interrupted. Seems like a well oiled machine thus far. She feels very well supported.
My understanding is about 1/3 of engineers do co-ops at Purdue.
Again, my D liked the flexibility of being co-op optional and having 3 or 5 terms to choose from.
She loves Purdue. Their engineering program is ranked T10 and employers flock there to hire.
For my D, she loved the Midwest, non city location. So that was a big positive for her too.
My son is very happy at Northeastern. As a first year, he hasn’t done a coop yet. A big draw for him was Boston. He likes living in a compact, walkable city. We aren’t from the east coast so experiencing a different part of the country has been a positive.