Not to veer totally off-topic, @nanotechnology , but the bike lanes on Mass Ave didn’t happen without a fight. It took a joint effort on the part of bicyclists and wheelchair users (for whom the sidewalks were also going to become less accessible under the original plan) to push the City to revise its car-centric redesign. http://archive.boston.com/news/local/articles/2009/03/08/mass_ave_battle_revs_up_again/ The suit was dismissed, but the city responded to the pressure and reworked their plan. So when you see the wheelchair users who live on Mass Ave near campus, you can thank them, in part, for the bike lanes - they played a big role in the lawsuit and in organizing to pressure the city. And @binky17 - yes, the upward building goes with the territory. The extent of gentrification is getting really tough, though. There’s a high likelihood that when the HUD contract of those Mass Ave buildings comes up for renewal in a few years, the owners will refuse to renew. (They barely renewed the last time around.) This was a semi-sketchy neighborhood when those buildings first went up, but it’s prime real estate now - the value of that property at market rate is staggering. Two 16-story buildings worth of low-income elderly and disabled residents will get Section 8 vouchers and will have to start searching for accessible apartments elsewhere, which basically means their days of a centralized location in the city (where the accessible public transit is) are numbered. In the meantime, they’re having an increasingly tough time hiring caregivers, because people who make the $14.12/hr MassHealth PCA wage (with newly-capped overtime!) can’t afford to live anywhere nearby. So basically, the view is the least of their worries. All of which is definitely WAY off-topic except to the extent that, while we all stress about how expensive NU dorms are, when you look at it in context it’s pretty understandable.
thank you so much, @nanotechnology !
@aquapt great post, thank you.
quick note about east village - unlike IV there are no singles - all the suite style (shared bath between the rooms) are doubles - see the rate chart for details - https://www.northeastern.edu/housing/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Upperclass.rates16-17-1.pdf
Has anyone ever heard of a NMF not getting the 30k?
I think we heard on CC of at least 1 case where that occurred last year, but I don’t remember the details. Can someone else confirm?
@nanotechnology yikes, that’s worrisome. @TomSrOfBoston @PengsPhils have you heard of a NMF not receiving the 30k? I understand that it is at NEU’s discretion, but no guarantee worries me. I thought this would make NEU affordable. USC is still very up front with their 26k.
@binky17 I believe that this was the thread in question:
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/19709958#Comment_19709958
Thanks @TomSrOfBoston I read it and I am still confused. I would like to think his NMF scholarship would be maxed because of his scores and gpa. I definitely thought NEU would be our best deal with the 30k, but we do have a tiny bit of need aid, which might reduce the merit. It may still be more than what we have now, though. Every bit helps.
@binky17 I was confused by that too. But it was only one poster here on CC.
@binky17 Did you read post 12 of that thread?
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/19709958#Comment_19709958
The poster received need based aid - which reduced the amount of the NMS. I don’t know why that makes a difference as long as he/she is getting a minimum of 30k up to the EFC. Remember there is the “Northeastern Promise” - which means you keep your need based aid. So even if you get a reduced NMS - as long as it matches your EFC or 30K - whichever is greater, it makes sense. They don’t stack merit - not even NMS.
I am not an NMF, but an NHRP scholar, and I can confirm that I did NOT receive 30k a year. I received 15k.
Thanks @marijke. Is NHRP part of the NMS Corporation?
@marijke I thought you said on another thread that your EFC was higher than the 30K NHRP scholarship. I don’t think NEU will stack the 30K - so they may deduct the Grant Aid they give you under FA, so that the total is still your EFC - but not less than the 30K. I think that is the only way we’ve seen them reduce the NMS/NHRP merit.
Thank you @suzyQ7 ! Keep hope alive. 
@suzyQ7 : I have not received a financial aid offer so I am not sure if that is in fact the case with me.
How long and how often are classes? Are classes typically every other day or every day? How often do people have Friday classes? How many classes do people typically take each semester? How much do you like the professors and how difficult are the classes?
How is the political science department?
@cc1313 classes meet either 2 times a week for 100 minutes each time or 3 times a week for 65 minutes each time. Labs are 2 hours and 50 minutes but many do not take the whole time. Introductory physics lab are only every other week. Friday classes a regular here but if you’re against them you can try to organize your schedule around it. By luck I only have physics lab on Friday, so I only have class then every other week. You usually take 4-5 classes each semester, between 16-19 credits. I love the professors here, I’m only a freshmen but I haven’t had one yet I didn’t like. If you get in, you can definitely handle the work load. It’s challenging, but not overwhelming. You have to work hard but there’s also time for fun and relaxing. I came from an uber competitive high school with an average of 6-8 hours of homework a night and definitely find myself less stressed here. Lengthy post, but I hope I gave you some helpful insight.
“I came from an uber competitive high school with an average of 6-8 hours of homework a night”
WOW, that is crazy!