BC vs Northeastern

Hello! I was recently admitted to both of my top schools, BC and Northeastern, and I’m currently trying to decide which one should I attend. I plan on pursuing a business career. At BC I was accepted to the College of Arts and Science with and undeclared major. I didn’t apply to CSOM because of the difficulty of acceptance. At BC I plan on majoring in Economics and maybe minoring or double majoring in International Studies. I love BC’s campus and its vibe much more than Northeastern but the uncertainty of my major and the impossibility of transferring to CSOM has me doubting. At Northeastern I would be majoring in International Business. The program seems great and the COOPs are a huge plus. I have visited both schools and money is not a problem for this decision. Is it worth studying economics at BC or should I stick with northeastern?
@TomSrOfBoston

Would you be in the BSIB program at Northeastern? It has a required international study and coop component which would give you significant exposure to a variety of international careers.

I have been accepted as a transfer to Northeastern and waiting on BC’s decision, and I will be in the same exact situation as you if I get into BC. Northeastern D’Amore McKim or BC CAS (economics).

The more I research, the more I am leaning towards Northeastern.

1.The rankings are very close and I would rather study what I want (business) rather than go to BC and not study my interest because it is ranked a few spots higher.

  1. Northeastern is preprofessional focused and the co-ops are huge for me, and I think it will help greatly when actually acquiring jobs.
  2. BC economics is great, but I also want to be surrounded by other students who are also interested in business.
  3. Northeastern's D'Amore McKim offers double major options within two different departments or two concentrations in the business school, which is also huge for me.

I also applied to 2 more business schools and I will strongly consider those too, but as of now, Northeastern is my top choice.

@Dontskipthemoose
Few thoughts:

  1. BC #3 Bloomberg Business Week, (up 1 spot from previous year), NEU #22 (down 3 spots). That's more than a "few spots higher."
  2. Not sure of "preprofessional" designation, but BC has history of high level internships for its students. True BC is not a co-op school.
  3. BC thru CSOM has an Econ concentration and therefore one would be "surrounded by other students who are also interested in business."
  4. CSOM also offers the option of double concentrations or a major in CSOM and a second major through A & S.

@Shade45 OP would be going to BC CAS and not CSOM. All your points are about CSOM, so they aren’t really helpful. The Bloomberg ranking is for business programs and not overall schools. If you are comparing BC CSOM with Northeastern’s business school, then yes, CSOM is better. But @PRMG250’s dilemma is choosing between settling for Economics in CAS or business school at Northeastern.

US News rankings has BC overall at #31 and Northeastern at #39. I am just saying that there is a minimal difference in rankings and I would rather study what I am passionate about rather than settle for something else for a couple ranking spots. My current school has CAS and a business school, and I am currently studying Econ in CAS. It is not even close to having the same opportunities, resources, and learning experience as business school majors, hence why I am transferring. Also, I think BC is a terrific school, otherwise I wouldn’t have applied. I wasn’t trying to bring down BC or anything. Essentially, I am saying I value the actual education and concentration more than rankings

@PRMG250 Choose the school you prefer based on Fit. If it includes the school that has the major you prefer, the location and Vibe of the students and program, and the overall personality of the school.

BC is a Jesuit school with a lot of Catholic students who are on the wealthy/preppy side of the spectrum. Northeastern is Co-op focused and has a more City vibe with a lot of kids that have or want “worldly” experience. BC is a “rah rah” school and a more traditional college experience​. NEU values international experience and getting kids into work experiences and/or research early on.

One is not better than the other (especially since you are not accepted to BCs CSOM) it’s all based on preference of the type of college experience that you want to have.

Since you only posted this in the BC forum and not the Northeastern forum you appear to be looking for reasons to choose BC.

What @suzyQ7 said. Two different vibes. Personally I can’t stand the vibe of BC, sort of pretentious for no reason. Lots of preppy people. definitely more catholic . Mostly mediocre sports teams for a D1 school. I think the education is good and I know some successful people that have graduated from there, including my old boss and was wildly successful as an entrepreneur.

That being said, I think the co-ps can really help kids figure out their career path and give them some needed experience before graduating. I think NEU is a little more cutting edge right now, while BC gives the more traditional college feel. NU is right down town, easier access to everything.

I’m married to an Economics professor, so take what I say with a grain of salt, but he says Economics is more academically rigorous than Business. It is definitely more versatile. You can go from Economics to Business and lots of other jobs as well. So think about why specifically you want to major in business before making your decision. Do you want to go into something specific, like Accounting or Actuarial Work? If so, then Business with a specialization that in those areas would be good. But if you want to go into something more general, a liberal arts major may be better. Think about people you know who are successful in business. How many of them were business majors? My guess is not many. I know four English majors who went to work on Wall St right out of college. My brother owns his own business, and he was a mechanical engineering major. My neighbor owns a business, and she majored in Psychology, another neighbor is a successful businessman and we just discovered he was a Classics major (much to my daughter’s delight, who is considering Classics), etc. Many people go into private industry with all kinds of majors, and then, when they get some experience in business, they go back and get their MBA. Many employers even pay for this.