<p>In almost every Northeastern brochure, it promotes its co-op program and I'm just wondering if it really is as great as it's made to sound. Do students really get job experience and are these actually good jobs? Is everyone guaranteed a job or is it competitive? Thanks! =)</p>
<p>Use common sense. When anyone or any institution touts anything so much as NEU touts its co-op program, there's always a catch. Sure, if you are in the top 10% of your class and you are in a technical field that values co-ops, then sure, you'll probably get some great experience (and $$). If you are majoring in a non-tech field or you are at the midpoint/bottom of your class, the co-ops won't be so glamorous, cuz they can get any jacka$$ college student to work for "free" in the name of experience. If you are not at the top of your class, lets face it, you are going to have to work very hard to get a decent co-op. Also, NEU is definitely living in the past and claims great co-op opps because in the dot-com craze, lots of companies were offering crazy cash. Thats not so true anymore. Caveat emptor!</p>
<p>hmm, i heard a different perspective from the students when i visited. do you attend nu?</p>
<p>I don't attend NEU but I was considering it. I also know several people who are now attending but no longer too psyched to be there. Most common complaint is that most kids are way too career focused and just want to know "what will get me ahead" rather than actually learning anything. Communcations/Poli Sci kids I know have some really questionable co-op assignments right now. Like CVS pharmacy, Boston Globe (gopher type jobs).</p>
<p>
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Communcations/Poli Sci kids I know have some really questionable co-op assignments right now. Like CVS pharmacy, Boston Globe (gopher type jobs).
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I choose Poly Sci as my major and Journalism as my second choice. All I can say is =(</p>
<p>oh GREAT. I'll be there later this month for the interviews, hopefully i can get some info on the co-op... </p>
<p>that and is any of the co-op noteworthy?</p>
<p>As I've said before, if you are at the top of your class (cream of a mostly mediocre crop) and have enough of a personality, you very well might get a great co-op. These are the co-ops you hear about. What you don't hear about are the borderline mind-numbing co-ops that the other 80-90% of the school gets. I'm not saying that you won't get a great co-op, but if you don't bust your a$$, you probably won't. Which is pretty much true of anything; its just that the NEU marketing machine will have you believe you'll get a co-op at the White House or Boston Globe or NYT just because you are a student there...</p>
<p>^ well that makes sense</p>
<p>I'm cream of the crop! :p</p>
<p>idk, this is my safety <3</p>
<p>eng_dude,</p>
<p>You sound bitter and cynical. "Cream of a medicore crop"? Everyone is led to believe they will be getting co-ops at the White House, Boston Globe, or New York Times? </p>
<p>The fact is, the list of the 50 biggest NU co-op employers is distributed at virtually every orientation. It's also available on-line. There are no secrets in that way.</p>
<p>I'm sorry you feel so negatively about NU, and I hope you're happy elsewhere. Sometimes negative viewpoints can be valuable on this forum, if only to balance the generally positive comments. But please try to post facts, not negative hyperbole.</p>
<p>Mr. Mxyzptlk, </p>
<p>Thanks for your post. Eng_dude has absolutely no first hand experience with Northeastern co-op program and thus is not qualified to comment about it. Knowing a few people who are Northeastern students does not make him an expert by any stretch. Even if these few people did not have the best of experience with the program, this is a tiny sample group in which to draw from. There over 14,000 undergraduate students at this school. The program is also 90+ years old with over 3000 participating employers worldwide. I can say with a high degree of certainty that the vast majority of the student body is quite happy with the program. How do I know? I saw the actual co-op surveys filled out by students. </p>
<p>I worked in Northeasterns Co-op department as a work study and was quite impressed with advisors and the quality and quantity of the posititions. The advisors are really dedicated to the program and spend a great deal of time networking with the key decision makers. The head of the Co-op Department is a Wharton MBA. She has instituted some very efficient and effective quality control measures (employer and student surveys, evaluative site visits etc.). The student surveys are available to other students who are interviewing at the same companies for co-op (nothing is hidden). Many of the companies have very structured co-op programs. The goals are established in advance (meaning the many of the projects that students work on evolved through discussions between the employer and school). This is especially true with some of the Fortune 500 companies (there are many). But some of the best experiences for students can be found in some of the start-up companies in the program where there are no set roles and people basically do whatever is required to get the job done (including work long hours and weekends). At the end of each co-op there is a period of reflection. Students are basically required to write about what they learned from their experience and about themselves (i.e. strengths and weaknesses etc.). View sample student/employer survey forms here (they are quite detailed):</p>
<p>Contrary to what Eng_dude says, there is really no such thing as mind numbing work. Once you are in any co-op, internship, or any job, you have to prove yourself. If you are proactive and can show that you can do the more challenging work, you will get it. If you sit on your rear, and wait for things to happen, well... you only have yourself to blame. It should be noted that level of work that a student receives increases as they become more experienced (the same is true for any job or career). My first co-op was somewhat entry level. However, it was a nice introduction to the real world and I gained some valuable skills. It was also a good networking experience because it helped me get my next co-op. By my third co-op, I was managing several people (some of whom had college degrees but no work experience). </p>
<p>There can be no doubt that having 1-2 years of relevant work experience on your resume will make you far more marketable than your typical college graduate. The networking opportunities that the program provides as well as interviewing and resume writing techniques are also invaluable. </p>
<p>I hope that this clears up some misconceptions about the program.</p>
<p>Hey everyone,</p>
<p>Here is a link to some taped interviews of Northeastern students that was conducted by an ABC News affliate for the Chronicle Show. I (includes an interview of student co-oping at the Boston Globe):</p>
<p>Edit: Students are basically required to write about what they learned from their experience and about themselves (i.e. strengths and weaknesses etc.). And share what they learned with their fellow students (i.e. knowlege sharing).</p>
<p>Here is the list of the top 100 co-op employers:</p>
<p>List of engineering co-op employers:</p>
<p>Here's some first-hand experience regarding NEU co-op: son graduated Fall 03 from the school of Computer Science (he did it in four years and one summer semester including 3 co-op sessions because of AP credit while the school was still on quarter system). He did 3 co-op terms, interviewed for several co-op positions for each term and had more than 1 co-op to choose from each time. Had three different employer co-op experiences. The last co-op placement kept him on part-time during the summer while he was finishing up his courses and then hired him full time as soon as he was finished. He started at around 70K with a nice benefit package. He is now earning 75k+ and his Master's degree work through Johns Hopkins U is being fully funded and he's halfway through the program while still working full-time. The experience he gained from working the co-ops as well as the experience of preparing resumes and doing interviews was invaluable. His three room-mates who were engineering majors also had no difficulty finding co-op placements, employment when they graduated and one is working on a Master's degree at Tufts University also re-imbursed by his employer. Did Northeastern and it's co-op program work as advertised for these students? I would say most certainly, yes.</p>
<p>Glad to hear its worked out for your son. That's great!</p>
<p>CelloMom,</p>
<p>Thanks for sharing your son's experience. Most of my classmates had similar experiences with the co-op program. Some of them were even able to get full tuition reimbursement from their employers (myself included). The only catch was that we had to agree to work for the company after graduation which was fine with us. There is nothing like having a nice well paying job lined up a year ahead of graduation. Some of my friends are still working for the same companies were they co-oped. Others worked for a few years and then went to top grad schools. All credit their success to the co-op program.</p>
<p>Be realistic about what your opportunities will be. That's all I'm saying. Lists of potential employers are great, but that's all they are, lists. If you don't work your butt off (like anywhere else, including the top schools in the country), don't expect any university affiliation to give you any "magical" boost. That's all I'm saying here and once again, its just plain common sense. I don't understand how stating this makes me bitter or anything else...</p>
<p>The co-op employers are not just "lists", but rather there are formal written co-operative agreements between the employers and the school to hire and train students. Why do employers like Northeastern's co-op program? Because they get a steady supply of full-time employees all year long (not just summers). The co-ops last for six months periods which means that the employers and students get more out it than any summer internship program. Anyone who has worked in the real world will tell you that it takes a good three to four months to train someone (with summer interns they are out the door too quickly). But you're right, just like any job, the students still have to work hard to get a permanent offer. There's no magic in that. A Harvard degree may get you in the door of a top company, but once you're there, you still need to prove yourself. The same is true with Northeastern's co-op program.</p>
<p>More Co-op info:
<a href="http://www.neu.edu/employ.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.neu.edu/employ.html</a></p>