Wondering if this is still the case. Or wondering if OP listed NEU as the #1 choice and visiting?
The OP says this student got a $21,000 scholarship…and will be a NMSF. This kid did NOT get a $30,000 scholarship for being NMF.
Wondering what’s up?
@thumper1 Northeastern does not award the NMF scholarship until they are NMF and list Northeastern as their first choice. They will not award it based on NMSF and the assumption that they will make NMF.
So @TomSrOfBoston …if this student does become NMF, and lists this school as #1, will his scholarship increase to $30,000?
Even if he totally loses the $7000 grant, he will still be a couple thousand dollars ahead. Is that $30,000 a YEAR? If so, this is a merit award not based on family finances…and would be great.
@thumper1 My son emailed the financial office at NEU and confirmed what you and @TomSrOfBoston have indicated. If he choses to go to NEU and notes that as his #1 choice for NMF, he would get a $30K, which would replace his awarded Dean Scholarship and reduce his need grant to $0. he would come out slightly ahead of his current package (but not necessarily where we need to be to make NEU a slam dunk choice.) The advantage is that there is no more need aid that would be reduced by outside scholarships. We are going to look at all options, especially considering that Co-ops could help supplement some of the “need” delta (our real need, not what the school thinks we need.)
Fortunately, he has a few other options. We are still waiting to hear from some other colleges. In addition, he already has Full Tuition (based on moving to MNF) to ASU (with acceptance to Barrett) and several other attractive packages from other schools.
Thanks to those who explained this.
remember even if the scholarship is wiping out all of his financial need, he can still borrow the $5500, which he can use toward helping to pay down the EfC (especially if you want him to have a financial stake in this).
IMHO, he should still get an afterschool/summer job to help offset some of his start up cost (dorm stuff, school supplies, book monies). While he may not be eligible for FWS, he can still look to see if he can get a work study job for pocket money and again, offset some of his expenses (books, laundry, misc items)
Keep in mind that co-oping is common at a lot of schools.
NEU is in Boston. There are TONS of off campus jobs he can apply for. Heck…there is a Starbucks on every corner. If he wants a really good job, have him apply to be an usher at Symphony Hall. That’s pretty close too!
@thumper1 Yes, that’s why the NMF scholarship is important for this family to understand - it sounded like they weren’t off by much and this could make a difference, especially if the student can line up a bunch of smaller scholarships that wouldn’t impact aid.
Yes, tons of schools have co-ops, however few schools make it as easy as NU. Companies recruit 19 year olds pretty heavily. Kids at other schools sometimes have to actually take a leave of absence if they want a 6-8 month co-op; not so at NU. Its model is built for long co-ops, and the long availability can definitely be an advantage when companies want to give their interns longer-term, intensive projects. And when some companies have shorter 12-14 week programs, kids can put together a couple of experiences. The flexibility and opportunity at NU is notable. YMMV.
Just for clarity, could Northeastern be referred to as NEU?
NU typically refers to NorthWESTERN…and I would hate for folks to get mixed up!
You are absolutely right about the co-op program at NEU. Very well established with excellent placements. Gives some added income as well as job experience on the resume for when the student graduates. It’s a win win.
And at Northeastern a student doesn’t have to “make up” what they miss while on coop because they are not missing anything.
You may want to take a look at this video. It was made by a current Northeastern student but it is not an official university video:
@thumper1
Both NU and NEU are used. Probably best to say NEU when on a forum like this, so apologies for any confusion. Until my son was of the age to apply, I thought Northwestern was the midwestern version of Northeastern (same model)! Both great schools!
Admissions would like it very much if you would use NU. :)) Rolls off the tongue a lot easier and makes for better marketing.
@nocook I can only share what I know from our first hand experience with our ds who is a chemE. He cooped for 12 straight months and was never not considered a full time student by his home university (students register for a 1 cr hr coop credit and it keeps them considered full time by the school). He was recruited on campus by multiple corporations. He chose which company he wanted to work for. He could have chosen a non-12 month route if he had wanted (they could do alternating semesters, 2 sequential semesters followed by a 3rd semester later on or the reverse).
Fwiw, the full time student piece was important for him. We moved to a different state the middle of his freshman yr. The only way he could maintain his instate tuition was if he maintained full time enrollment.
I am not sure what the reference is to making anything up that was missed while cooping?? I would need an explanation about what is being missed unless it has to do with course sequencing and missing fall only or spring only classes. That can be an issue if a coop is not well thought out and they coop alternating semesters. But it is the norm and students do make plans accordingly.
My ds’s coop company was fabulous. He made about 2/3 of his post-graduation salaray. His coop company gave him full benefits until he graduated plus scholarship $$ until he graduated (he did feel guilty when he didn’t sign on with them at graduation but he had other offers that he liked better). He arrived back on campus and jumped right back into his course sequence and graduated.
He also attended a university that was generous with brought in credits, so he was able to graduate in 4 yrs even with his 12 months of cooping. He did take a couple of classes one summer, though.
@tribruin I would make sure you investigate the career center at any school being considered. Ask about coops. Ask about paying full tuition while cooping. (I had never heard of that before but someone told me their student had to pay full tuition during their coop semester. My ds only had to pay for 1 cr hr.) Check into course offerings and sequences. Look into credits accepted from either APs or DE. All of those can impact total costs.
Oh absolutely, I do not think NEU is the only school that is flexible and offers great co-op opportunities. That is simply not true at all and I wouldn’t imply that it is. However, it isn’t the rule that schools make it so easy and have a model that easily supports long co-op cycles while finishing in four years (two co-ops) or 4.5/five years (three co-ops). My son has met many kids from tippy top schools in his co-op travels that have had to jump through hoops to take the opportunity. It surprised us that it would be that hard. I am not sure either about making up things that were missed - perhaps not moving along in concert with one’s cohort?
@Mom2aphysicsgeek We will definitely look in to coops at and school, but the coop program at NEU is so integrated in to their curriculum, it is part of their 4/5 year program.They do not pay tuition while in a Co-Op, but would have to pay for housing/food, if they want to stay in the dorms during their co-op (assuming they co-op in Boston).
He will has had a job for the past 1 1/2 years (but not saved enough, unfortunately, much like his parents). He will have an on or off campus job, regardless of where he goes. I feel that it is important that he takes partial responsibility for his education. I have seen some references in this thread that the financial obligation of his education is our (parents) responsibility. I disagree with that. it will be a joint effort. He needs to have some skin in the game. I wish that I could just give him $30K a year and make everything OK, but that it not realistic.
One thing to keep in mind is how student earnings during CO-OP might impact the need based aid. It might change the EFC on FAFSA?
^which is one reason merit is better…income/assets are now irrelevant. You can win the lotto and it stays the same.
@Tribruin I did want to say that your son should feel very lucky about his hard work. It did get him NMS and allows him to attend other schools for which he can afford.
My story of sadness is that my 4.0gpa son is not a merit scholar and most likely will not be able to attend his top choice as it is too expensive for us. We just cannot pay a $45K tuition bill each year. So like others in our boat, he is applying to lesser schools where he will be given better merit aid. He is just average at a top school but at a lower school, he will be one of the higher ones. The lower ranked schools offer more money to higher GPA students because they just cannot attract them given the lower ranked programs.
Your son worked hard and IS being awarded a chance of a lifetime. I wish you and your son the very best. Good luck.
OK so I’m the son and I’m just gonna chime in for a second
What annoys me about NMSF is how much one test has defined my college search. Like I’ll be the first to admit I got lucky, I didn’t even realize the psat mattered for anything until after scores were posted. I didn’t work hard for it, I got lucky I’m a good test taker. So that’s why it is annoying that schools value that above all my leadership, grades, recommendation letters, and it has opened so many doors but I don’t like to think that that is the most important thing about my application When I’ve put more work into just about everything else on my application. Back to the point however: does anyone at NEU have any experience with how tuition costs have panned out over the 5 year plan? From what I’ve seen it seems like the first year is very expensive but then the next three are much more reasonable, especially with co-op pay.
@MassDaD68 I hate how so many amazing students don’t receive these opportunities and I personally feel schools shouldn’t funnel so many resources into just one title