<p>From the title, which would be the generic better choice for engineering. I can see the URI would have the beach i really want, and BU has the college town i want, and northeastern is a good college hahah. i have approx 3.8 gpa, i take sat soon. Pretty good on the community service, i live in new york, and one parent works.</p>
<p>I would probably recommend BU or Northeastern but you should definitely visit if you have the opportunity since they are so close to each other. Also since these are both private and only one parent works you should discuss finances because BU costs about 56,000 and Northeastern costs around 53,000 and neither guarantee to meet full need. URI will probably be the best bet since oos cost of attendance is about 40 grand. If you get around a 2000 on your SAT you will most likely be in contention for the Centennial scholarship at URI. They do not seem to have a set amount on that scholarship so I would assume the higher the stats the more money.</p>
<p>@invader thank you, finance is huge, and thats good to know how my sat could lessen the dues, if i do well.</p>
<p>What other schools are you looking at currently? i would definitely suggest applying to a SUNY either Binghamton or Stony Brook depending on which one is better for your major. They are relatively cheap schools for the education and being instate will certainly help with the cost of attendance. Cost of attendance for Binghamton and Stony Brook is about 20,000 for instate students.</p>
<p>From B.U. and Northeastern, you can get to public beaches via public transportation. Do you have any other criteria that matter to you? What branch of engineering are you considering? Have your run the financial aid calculators to see how much your family’s expected contribution is? Are you relying on merit aid? These issues should factor into your decision. Perhaps more than the beach factor ;-)</p>