Hi,
I’m under the impression that the vast majority of co-ops are paid. How much can a student expect to earn from this? Do students live on campus while in a co-op or do they have to move out? Does the school set you up with a co-op or do you have to find it for yourself, like finding a job? Can you ever take, say, a couple night classes while doing your co-op? Does co-op pay mess up your financial aid for the next year?
Thanks in advance!
Yes, the vast majority of coops are paid,. In business, engineering etc. all or virtually all are paid. In humanities and CAMD some may be unpaid.
Wages can vary from $10/hour to $30/hour. Again business, engineering CS etc. would be the best paid.
If your coop job is in the Boston area you may choose to live on campus.
Coop jobs are neither guaranteed nor assigned as is stated on the website. You have a 1 credit course on resume prep, interviewing skills etc. that gives you access to the coop job site. Resumes are submitted and, hopefully, interviews are arranged. You have to sell yourself like in the real world. Many coop employers have had a relationship with Northeastern for over 50 years.
There is talk of offering online courses for students on coop. Night classes at NU are through CPS and not part of the regular curriculum.
Coop earnings do not affect financial aid. A rule of thumb is that coop earnings should cover your living expenses while on coop with hopefully a bit left over.
It is possible to take online classes while on co-op (the most common one I know of is Advanced Writing, a required English course), but I’m not sure how scholarships and financial aid work if you’re taking a class that way.
While you’re on co-op, you’re still considered a full-time student and have access to all university resources even though you’re not paying the university anything during that time. This includes the gym, library, student health services, advisors, etc.
I was surprised by how well-organized the co-op search process was. After over 100 years of doing this, they have a great system worked out. There is a huge database of positions to look through, and you apply through your co-op advisor by selecting which ones you want to apply to, and they send off your resume. But you can also set up a co-op on your own outside of the co-op system if you find someone who wants to higher you, or your co-op advisor can help you set something up. This can be a more challenging route since it usually requires more initiative and can be a hassle, but I actually ended up getting all 3 of my co-ops outside of the established co-op database.
I tried to do this when I was admitted, as did many other families, so I’m just going to toss it out there to PLEASE try not to account for co-op as a way to fund your education. Ideally, yes, you will come out better than the average college student but if you choose NU when it is unaffordable (or requires taking out some serious loans) with the expectation that co-op will make that money back, you will probably be in for an unpleasant surprise.
As TomSr mentioned, you can more or less expect to cover living expenses (housing & food) for the duration of your co-op, with maybe a little left over. Depends hugely on major, but I’d rather be surprised in a good way than in a bad way. There is the undeniable bonus of being able to take a break from paying tuition for a semester, though, or using some of the extra co-op money to start to pay off loans.
We live pretty close so she could live at home, but it still sounds like she probably wouldn’t make enough to offset very much of the cost. We haven’t received our financial aid package yet (not sure if it’s affordable or unaffordable), so I’m scarping for ways to make it happen, you are correct, novafan1225. Appreciate the warning.
Yes, co-op income should be seen as a bonus rather than accounting for it as dependable income for paying other school costs. The exception might be students who are able to live at home while on co-op (usually those in the Boston area). This significantly reduces costs and I know of some students who have used this to help offset costs for their class semesters.
That would be my daughter, nanotech. Actually, is there any requirement that a freshman MUST live on campus? Would being a commuter be a huge mistake at this school? It seems like it shouldn’t be, because it used to be known as a “commuter” school, however, things have changed so much! We have savings to support the first couple years, it’s the second two years I am worried about if her aid package turns out to be non existent. (Strangely, they never processed her forms even though we submitted everything in time for early action. My dread is that all aid/scholarships are already given and nothing is left for her.) 
Also, how many AP credits can be used? She’s taken 9 classes. Would they let her graduate in 3 years?
Students whose families live within a 20 mile radius of campus may commute from home.
It is important for the parents to realize that their student has entered a new phase in their lives. A student posted last year on CC that she was commuting to Northwestern University near Chicago from her family home. Her parents insisted that she be home for dinner each night at 6 PM. This hindered her ability to engage in campus activities and socialize with students living on campus.
Although relics from NU’s commuter days (like me) are rare.
Don’t worry, I know that. My d rarely walks in the door before 9 pm even now as a high school kid (she has a lot of rehearsals). She doesn’t actually like dorms. (She has lived in them for certain summer programs.) I think it would be good for her however and worry it will be hard to make new friends not being in a dorm.
We are within the 128 beltway.
Exploring options, asking questions, the vetting process, you know.
If it’s affoardable, I would recommend living on campus the first year because that can be such a great way to make connections to classmates early on, make friends, and build your community. But I do still know plenty of commuter students. It just takes some more initiative to get involved in clubs to build a network of friends. It is very common for students on co-op in the area to commute for those 6 months, though. In terms of financial aid, I believe that Northeastern promises to never reduce the university need-based aid (http://www.northeastern.edu/financialaid/grants-scholarships/promise.html). I don’t know how this plays out in reality, but that might be some assurance.
For the AP issue, you can count up to 32 credits. But you can still use the AP to place out of intro-level courses beyond the 32 credits, though. This definitely could make it possible to graduate in 3 years, depending on the major and what those AP classes are in. (In some cases, it’s not recommended to skip out of intro classes using AP, depending on your major, the course, and the student’s confidence level in the material.) This was my original plan, since I came in with 45 credits (back before they set a cap): 3 years, maybe 3.5 if I did a co-op. I ended up staying for 5 years and 3 co-ops. So keep an open mind, too!
Red poodles, you are required to live on campus the first 2 years. My daughter came in with 7 APs. She had 9 but they gave her credit for 7. (They only take 1 English AP). She plans on attending for 5 years with 3 co-ops. That is 7 semesters of actual classes. You have to complete at least 2 co-ops, so graduation in 3 years would only be 2 years of college classes. I think 4 or 5 years are the norm.
No, there is a local student exemption that allows commuting.
2 co-ops are not necessarily required for all majors. Most majors have some sort of “experiential education” requirement, which can be fulfilled by co-op, internships, directed study, or an honors thesis.
Yes, I mean 3 years of classes, plus whatever co-ops, as opposed to 4 years of classes plus whatever co-ops. But it sounds like she will be able to get one semester of credit or so through her APs. She would be in the College of Science in Environmental Science, although, many kids do end up changing their mind. She has been accepted to engineering programs at other universities so that is also in her mind, but secondary to ES.
How easy is it to change majors and/or double major in two different colleges, for instance, environmental science and environmental/civil engineering?
The system of colleges here have never been a restricting factor in my experience. A lot of parents ask about rimilar issues at info sessions for the College of Science and I’m always surprised, because in 5 years that never occurred to me as something that could be a potential issue. The colleges provide structure but don’t put up barriers. A lot of the combined majors are cross-college and there should be no issues with a double major across colleges at all.
Thank you, this has all been very helpful!
@nanotechnology I didn’t read through this entire thread but I saw you asked if it is possible to take online classes during co-op. It is possible but they try to limit you to two at the most. You have a lot less time for classes than you think you will have.
@redpoodles As a freshman at Northeastern I don’t know anyone who is commuting. I really recommend at least trying to live in the dorms the first year. You can always opt out of housing sophomore year. It is much easier to make friends this way and though dorm living can be frustrating you could always have her try living in a single to give her some feeling of privacy. As for co-ops and AP credit it’s great when you have it and are able to be really flexible with your schedule. It’s definitely possible to graduate from Northeastern in 3 years and I actually could but I really like the opportunity co-op provides and I know if I take the 3 co-ops and graduate in 5 years I will have an excellent resume which to me is the reason I’m at this school. When it comes down to it for me the point of college is so I can have a career after this and that’s why I’m at this school.
Are all the coops full time? Was that hard to transition to working full time?
Is there a way for our family to connect with anyone cooping in Digital Arts and Game Design? Would my son just contact the department and ask to be connected with a student of the department?
And I understand you can do 1, 2 or 3 coops, correct?