<p>I posted this in the BU forum as well. Anyone here want to comment?</p>
<p>Okay I know that BU ranks higher in "THE rankings" than NEU, but what about engineering? NEU has a great history of engineering and coop and placement. What does everyone think of BU's engineering school? I also notice that BU doesn't offer ChemE, anyone have a comment on that? If someone were looking to go to school in Boston for engineering what would you recommend (given that MIT is extremely tough to get into and too intense for what my DD is looking for). Thanks everyone.</p>
<p>DS is at Northeastern now. He is not an engineering major so I can't comment much on that except to say that NEU just received a large donation toward it's engineering program. Lots of engineering students and their parents were at the summer orientation I attended. They all talked about the coop program and placement out of school. We visited both back when we were doing that and BU didn't feel like as much of a campus. NEU definitely has a campus feel but it is still in the middle of the city. My son is a freshman, so far this year a friend from Brandeis came for the day, he went to Providence College on the train to see someone else, he went into the city to visit someone at Emerson, and last night some kids from Berklee were at their dorm. Says a lot for Boston itself and the allure of easy transportation and kids from different colleges everywhere. NEU also has a VERY nice honors dorm if your DD would qualify for that. It just opened this fall. Suite style with full kitchen, bath and living room shared by 7 or 8 students.</p>
<p>My son is also a freshman at Northeastern, majoring in engineering. As I mentioned in the BU forum, Northeastern is rapidly moving up in its rankings, test score averages are on the rise, and it is becoming more selective. We were told that this year's entering engineering class has the highest scores in the school's history. BU's rankings and test scores are very comparable, with BU slightly higher (and I would guess that like Northeastern, the average engineering test scores are also slighly higher than other colleges within BU) so in many ways the two schools are very similar. </p>
<p>We were actually not seriously looking at any New England schools and the ONLY reason my son even applied to Northeastern was its co-op program since we were not searching outside of the midwest and easily could have found a comparable school a little closer to home. However, he also liked the campus feel at Northeastern, and had it been more like BU's campus, he probably would not have chosen it despite its co-op program. </p>
<p>As a result, I have never looked at BU in depth and cannot comment on the merits of its engineering program or lack of Chem E per se (although of course if you are seriously considering Chem E I would suggest going with a school that offers that major). With respect to these two schools, it really does come down to personal preference (or possibly preference combined with financial aid packages). </p>
<p>Btw, my son did not know what area of engineering he wanted to study when he was first applying to colleges, but was leaning towards electrical or mechanical; a few days ago he announced that he is now seriously looking at chemical (in jr yr of hs he was leaning towards chemical and our college search initially focused on schools with that major and also good co-op programs, then suddenly he switched interests in early fall of sr yr or at least was convinced he did NOT want chem eng, and it felt like we were suddenly starting the entire college search all over since we had ruled out schools that did not offer chem eng). So if your D is undecided it may be wise to choose somewhere with more options. Also, at Northeastern, students are required to take a 1-credit Intro to Eng course to expose them to the different areas of engineering before they have to select their major. BU may offer a similar course but regardless of where you attend, an intro course like this is definitely a plus for students who are undecided, since it may make selecting a major a lot easier.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the helpful information scansmom. I agree they must keep their options open as to what engineering to focus on and I like that they encourage them to wait before selecting a major. I've lived in New England all my life and while NEU has always been considered a good school, it never really got a lot of attention/respect being overshadowed, I believe, by Harvard, MIT, BC, BU, Tufts... etc. I am glad it is really starting to get some recognition, while becoming ever more selective. </p>
<p>We are visiting NEU on Wednesday so DD will get a feel for the environment and see if it's right for her. (I'm guessing she will love it, however, since she has so many friends attending school in Boston now, as well as others planning to attend schools there next year).</p>
<p>How do you feel about the area of Boston that NEU is in? It has been said a few times on CC that BU is in a better location - does that just mean closer to activities, etc. or safer? Even though I have been in Boston numerous times, I am not at all familiar with NEU and its location.</p>
<p>Unfortunately I am not familiar with Boston at all having only been there 3 times and only to visit the school (in April after S was accepted, summer orientation, and Aug to move him in), but I felt very comfortable in the immediate area surrounding Northeastern--there are so many schools surrounding it (including BU) that it all feels so much like a huge campus town and nothing like an inner-city area. Safety was a big concern among many parents I talked to, but bottom line, you just need to use common sense same as you would in any large city, not go out alone at night or in areas you are not familiar with, etc. Physically NEU is probably a little closer to some activities but BU is just as accessible to the rest of the city by the T. </p>
<p>Also, my son did not make it into the honors program but still received a very decent merit scholarship...</p>
<p>Forgot to mention that my son also received a very nice merit scholarship....scansmom reminded me. As far as Boston, I grew up in the area. The area around NEU used to be dicey many years ago but it is fine now. At summer orientation lots of parents asked about safety...the campus has the standard, campus police, emergency lights everywhere, etc. They tell the kids to program the campus police number in their cels, not to go out alone at night, etc. I think the area is just fine...not any different than BU in terms of safety. Visiting colleges two summers ago my son and I stayed around the BU area. Perfectly safe at night, same with NEU.<br>
I will echo scansmom about common sense. The T is right there on the NEU campus too.<br>
Also, check out some of the pics on the old posts of this forum..lots of new buildings, nice gym facility for the students which is separate from the gym the athletes use, etc.<br>
If you have questions after your visit, feel free to PM me.</p>
<p>Our son is a freshman at NU this year and Boston is 3000 miles from home, but he is very happy there. Like Scansmom's son, our son switched majors of interest several times during his senior and PG years. He originally applied as an engineering major leaning towards mechanical/electrical then thought he might be interested in civil/structural, then after taking AP Enviro in hs, he decided biomedical engineering might be a good fit for him. He ultimately switched to the NU Bouve 6-year pharmD program before he entered and that's where he's currently enrolled. During orientation, the staff told us that about 10% of the students in the program will change after their first year, but that NU offers so many programs, there will be something that will fit most students. One of the orientation leaders said that he started out in one major (biology?) and transferred to the NU nursing program as a sophomore.</p>
<p>Have fun with your visit - it's a great urban campus and it seems like the kids get around easily and comfortabley using the T and by foot.</p>
<p>PG, I gather you are going on the engineering tour, since you are visiting on Wednesday. We thought it was a great orientation and tour even tho my son will probably not apply as an engineer. It was still worthwhile to come back for the regular tour as there was no overlap. scansmom, I am trying to get a feel for what it takes statwise to get invited into the honors college. It would be nice!</p>
<p>I believe Northeastern automatically considers the top 2% of its applicants for their Honors program. A little about my son, he has Aspergers and is very strong in math/science but weaker in English/language arts areas (eg his Math SAT was 770 but Verbal/critical reasoning was under 600 - and he refused to take it over!). He was in the gifted program at school, and took a very rigorous courseload, was an IB diploma candidate (although did not get the diploma), took AP courses, and was a B/B+ student overall. My guess is the low SAT score hurt him the most or that combined with Cs and Bs in English/History courses. He did receive a renewable merit scholarship but the pool who receive merit scholarships is much larger than just the top 2%-at least top 4%? However, one requirement to keep the scholarship (at least in Engineering) is that you must maintain a B average. I'm not sure of exact stats and don't recall the school averages anymore to even estimate them but hopes this helps a little.</p>
<p>It is possible to apply and be admitted to the honors program in your second semester or in sophomore year and my son still has hopes of being accepted...he also told me was doing B+ work in his history elective so far (European History), of course that's only based on 1 quiz but at least the scholarship is not in jeopardy (yet)!</p>
<p>NJRes, Yes, we are going on the engineering tour, which I just learned was 2 hours and we were wondering about whether we should take the general tour or not. What about the general information session? All in all it would be 4 hours, but we'll make the time if it is worthwhile. Thanks</p>
<p>Students who apply to NEU are automatically considered for the honors program. To be considered, you have to be in the top 10% of the applicant pool. My son had a 4.04 weighted GPA and a 730V, 650M SAT. He had community college classes with As and Bs in those and APs. To stay in the honors program he has to maintain a 3.4. To keep his merit scholarship he has to maintain a 3.0. Students are also automatically considered for merit scholarships, there is no separate application process. </p>
<p>I should also mention that different majors have different applicant pools. My son is a CJ -criminal justice-major. It is generally a less competitive major and he tells me that most of the kids in his honors dorm are business, engineering, majors. </p>
<p>They did say this, but I also feel geography plays a part. They have a lot of students from the New England/Atlantic states. I think (?) his being from CA helped him a bit.</p>