I thought the common wisdom was that if a program is ABET accredited, it’s OK?
A bit of a different approach. Sit down with your parents today. Explain the problem with the overall cost. Talk about feeling the need to expand your college list, and applying to schools after the list comes out next week. See what their input is re: a gap year and how they may be willing to help.
@MaineLonghorn Yes, if it’s ABET accredited it should be okay. But it doesn’t seem to have much of a bioengineering program, and as OP notes, that’s a hard field to break into without a strong program. It’s not a field where you can just go market a skill-set, i.e. coding, etc.
To me, the big issue is that this program compares so unfavorably to OP’s state flagship. The out-of-pocket would be more than U of Arkansas, which has solid ABET accredited programs including several bio-related tracks. OP would be taking on debt for something that isn’t above the obvious baseline for staying in-state.
Further, if he were to take a year off (I can’t remember if gender is stated, sorry if I’m assuming wrong), he could not only save up some money for college but also be eligible for automatic merit at a number of other state flagships that are at least as strong as his own, potentially getting a better education than what’s on offer at his current nearby school, completely free.
That’s a high bar. This school doesn’t clear it. If he had a full ride scholarship, then “okay” might come into play; but he doesn’t. He shouldn’t back into spending $120K+ over four years on a questionable value, just because his selection/application process went poorly. He wouldn’t have gotten into Northeastern, with merit, if he weren’t well qualified. Either a late application or a do-over is a fine option.