<p>I've been thinking about this for quite a while now but I still can't decide! I live in MA so BU and NEU will be close to home and their urban locations appeal to me alot because I <3 Boston. However, UMD College Park is on the metro and is just 10 minutes out of D.C, so it is somewhat urban. Business is my intended major and all those schools cost about the same. I got great FA from northeastern so now i am only paying around 35,000 a year. Paying 30,000 for Maryland and just a bit over 40,000 for BU. </p>
<p>I am aware of the positives that will come with the co-op program if i go to NEU, but I am still uncertain why the recruiter's rating is soo low (business week) as well as its general program ranking on USNWR. Is co-op really an advantage? It's equivilant to essentially four years of school with one year of work, which can be obtained without the co-op program. </p>
<p>On another note, I feel like NEU and BU have similar school atmospheres and student body, whereas Maryland is your typical state school (frats, sports, etc...)</p>
<p>I’ve heard that part of USNWR’s rankings takes into consideration the % of students who earn their degree in a planned 4 years. Since the large majority of NEU students do 5 years, the school can’t really fit that criteria, which I’ve heard has an effect on the ranking. Also, NEU really turned itself around about 7-8 years ago… before it had been a small commuter school with essentially no national reputation. It’s amazing to see the differences between my friends who graduated in 2007 and the people I meet who are current freshman… the quality of students is way higher now than in the past. I think it just takes a while for the rankings to catch up with the school.</p>
<p>And you’re right, NEU and BU are pretty similar in terms of atmosphere… it’s been talked about a lot on this forum if you search for it.</p>
<p>the USNWR’s rankings are simply based on surveys of the school’s deans according to their website. no where does it mention the 4 year graduation rate…</p>
<p>^right, but NEU is ranked higher than BU in the business major ranking. so now i am wondering which matters more…overall university ranking or specific major ranking? i can think of a great example right now. indiana’s kelley school of business is considered one of the best in the field of business. a IU graduate when competing with boston college graduate might still lose out because BC is more prestigious overall…?</p>
<p>“Northeastern is good and all, but it’s basically like BU but with less prestige”
epic fail.
sushi cutter I’m in the same position as you…I’ve been accepted to NEU and BU and a couple of others with solid business programs
as for your question “overall university ranking or specific major ranking?”
the answer is most certainly specific major ranking
think about it…what do your future employers refer to(assuming you’ll be in the business field)…Business Week or US News?</p>
<p>^I am actually not so sure because in my previous example, I am sure 9 times out of 10 the employer will prefer the BC candidate over the IU candidate. Overall university rankings does matter as it indicates the environment that you were surrounded with for four years (5 for NEU). Your surroundings shape who you are just as much as the specific school does. Which is why I am eliminating NEU due to its extremely low overall ranking…</p>
<p>I’m glad you’ve eliminated NEU from your list because if I do choose to attend NEU I won’t have to meet people like you who judge a school entirely on the US News ranking</p>
<p>“Your surroundings shape who you are just as much as the specific school does.”
you think NEU accepts average students compared to UMD and BU?
check out the stats of accepted students for each school and see how much difference there is</p>
<p>I know a bunch of people who’ve been accepted to BU but waitlisted or rejected by NEU
so go for it dude…it’ll be one possible open spot for one of my friends </p>
<p>“Which is why I am eliminating NEU due to its extremely low overall ranking”
I don’t think any school which is in tier 1 can be considered to have an ‘extremely low’ overall ranking</p>
<p>are you sure you weren’t wait listed (because there’s a difference between accepted and wait listed in case you didn’t know) at NEU because you seem rather bitter about it?</p>
<p>chill buddy i am not gonna argue with you. those are just my thoughts and if you wanna change my thoughts being rude is not the correct way to do it. </p>
<p>“I’m glad you’ve eliminated NEU from your list because if I do choose to attend NEU I won’t have to meet people like you who judge a school entirely on the US News ranking”</p>
<p>Now that is a terrible assumption…if i am truly like that i would of submitted my deposit fee to university of illinois ages ago. prestige and ranking are important factors to think about when selecting the school you want to enroll in. yes NEU is getting more selective but that doesn’t change the fact that outside of new england it is not as well known as BU. you can talk all you want to your job interviewer about how selective and amazing NEU is but i doubt they would give a crap. NEU is simply not as prestigious. the only reason why i am considering NEU is because of its co-op program which provides much desired work experience and a better self understanding of what directions i want to take in my career. however those positives are self-serving and have little influence on how the employer/recruiter think about you and your abilities.</p>
<p>“however those positives are self-serving and have little influence on how the employer/recruiter think about you and your abilities.”</p>
<p>where are you getting this from?? because i know a lot of people (including my brother in law) that had reserved spots after graduation in the well-known companies they worked for during their co-op… not to mention high starting pay. and the real job experience definitely gives you an edge in the business field… prestige aint the only factor</p>
<p>and yeah, neu’s US news ranking might be low, but you gotta realize that the school is a LOT better than it used to be… the rankings will eventually follow. NEU’s businessweek ranking shows this</p>
<p>either way, whether you go to NEU UMD OR BU, all 3 schools are real well known for business so choose your school based on other factors like campus, financial aid, etc… dont just rule NEU out because its #96 on a ranking chart.</p>
<p>Go with NEU…i work at a Bulge Bracket Bank and i see more NEU students and actually have a couple interning right now and am impressed with the product. I have yet to come across a BU students and have met only a few from BC</p>