<p>Hi,
I plan on majoring in Environmental Studies/Political Science and I'm completely torn between Brandeis and Northeastern.</p>
<p>I know that Brandeis has the academic rigor and cultural diversity that I'm looking for.
However, it is pricier.</p>
<p>Northeastern has the amazing, convenient location (in Boston, with access to public transportation right on campus) and the co-op program, which looks really exciting. I also got in the Honors program and am a Presidential Global Scholar, which means I'm guaranteed a scholarship for an international co-op. I'm not as confident in the strength of Northeastern's Environmental Studies/Poly Sci programs, though.</p>
<p>The two major factors in my college search were academics and location, and each school seems to stand out in either one but not the other. And since Environmental Studies is relatively a new major, I'm actually not too clear on the strength of the program in either school. Prestige is not as big a deal to me, but from what I've heard, Brandeis seems to be more well known.</p>
<p>//edit: I should also add that I've visited both and liked both very much.</p>
<p>So the question is: Which school is the stronger option, and is more worth it in the long run?
I will be so grateful if anyone could please give me any advice/input on either school to help me make a decision!! Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Brandeis’s reputation is much higher than Northeastern.</p>
<p>Is it worth the difference – impossible question. I suppose the first question is what is the difference, the second question is what the impact of paying the extra college expenses would be on your family.</p>
<p>Yeah, I guess what I’m trying to ask is: is it worth it to pay more (say, 15-20k over 4 years) for better school reputation and higher quality education? Or do you think it’d be wiser to maybe sacrifice a bit of education quality and school reputation for better location and access to opportunities? </p>
<p>Also, I’d really appreciate input about the Envi Studies or Poly Sci program from either school, especially from anyone who has close experience!
Again, thanks in advance! :)</p>
<p>My gut reaction is that if it was $15-20,000 a year, this would be really tough. But if it’s $5000 a year, that probably shouldn’t be enough to pass on a school of Brandeis’ caliber if you can manage it financially. And location-wise, I think they have buses all the time into Boston and to the other schools near them, so it’s not like you’re talking about a rural LAC. I don’t know anything about Northeastern, but I would ask whether the co-op program interferes with “bonding” among classmates because someone is always off campus and whether everyone graduates in 4 years.</p>
<p>Cookies --</p>
<p>It really depends on whoyou ask – my D applied (ED) and attended Brandeis even though with her grades and scores we were reasonably certain that merit money would have been available at many schools (likely NE, but since she didn’t apply, who knows).</p>
<p>So, I guess I’d say yes Brandeis is worth it (or more to the point, I SAID this). Looking back, I think it was worth it – there is a lot more than economics involved in this answer, though.</p>
<p>However, we were fortunate in that we could afford the expenses without significant hardship and t was an investment we chose to make in my D. Were our economic circumstances different, I honestly don’t know that I would have been able to make that choice.</p>