I’ll bet being open to NUin* or NUBound** could increase your admission chances. My son listed it in the middle*** (would consider NUin or NUBound but prefers the Boston campus) This might hurt his chances, but he was being honest. I think there are 3 choices (not exact wording but something like this.)
-definitely interested in NUin or NUBound
-would consider NUin or NUBound***
-not interested in NUin or NUBound
*NUin=campus in the U.S (California?)
**NUBound=overseas campus (London?)
My kid did the same. She’d prefer a more traditional freshman year, but said she’d be open minded
NUBound also used the new Oakland campus (old Mills college) as an option this year. Most NUIN is overseas but also had the Oakland option.
NU has had the NUIN program for over a decade now and it is very popular. Some have said that approx 1/3 of the frosh class starts NUIN. NUBound is maybe three years old; it started as an option only for international students when it started. With the high number of applicants NU gets now, they will fill all those spaces and many who say they are not interested will be offered, and some who want NUIN will only be offered regular Boston admission. I’m not so sure those responses matter much honestly bc students seem to report ever kind of outcome compared to what they said they were interested in.
NU like many other colleges went test optional in the 20-21 admissions cycle. From what people have reported NU has discouraged people from submitting scores unless they are very high. So fewer and fewer are submitting and those that do are trending higher. Some say it’s for ranking stats, perhaps scores are just becoming less relevant. (And those with really high scores and GPA) seem to get the consideration that they’re using NU as an safety school and get deferred, unless they’re ED or have shown a ton of interest so they know you’d come if admitted. They are very yield conscious, especially so, since the over yield in fall 2021.
How has NU discouraged people from reporting scores unless they are very high?
I think I mixed up NUin & NUBound. I know one is within the U.S. and one is abroad.
NUBound is a one-year program that was originally only in London but this year could be Mills College in Oakland, CA or London. NUin is fall semester abroad in several countries, including England, Scotland, Italy, Spain, Germany and Greece. This has more info if you are interested.
Thank you so much for clarifying. I know it’s mainly due to overcrowding/housing issues, but it’s great they offer so many options. My son really wants to study in a Spanish-speaking country (preferably fully in Spanish) so the Spain option is appealing.
Well, understanding they have discouraged kids from submitting scores, I still don’t think it will make much difference. The mid range on ACT ( 31% reporting) was already 33-35 for the 2020-2021 cycle. How much higher could it go even with fewer kid submitting, 34-35? That will be it. It can’t go any higher than that. I just don’t think they discouraged kids to submit in order to make them look more “desired” as some people suspected. Probably like you said, they may think the scores are just getting less relevant.
NUIN also offers the Mills College (Oakland) option too.
My understanding is that they have suggested it’s not worth submitting scores unless you’re above the 75% mark which is incredibly high scores already. Like many schools (UCs included) I would not be surprised if they just go TO completely.
NUIN has been a program at NU for over a decade. It allows them to fill beds while upper class students are on coop, and thus they are able to offer admission to more students. They have not started this program in response to housing/overcrowding issues. Many schools offer such first semester study abroad options. NUIN has become an incredibly popular program as there are many students now that are looking for these types of innovative and international experiences, right off the bat. It’s not for everyone, but it does provide an entry into NU for many who might otherwise have not been accepted due to normal class size enrollments. NUBound is relatively new, maybe this is the third or fourth year. It originally was only offered to international students but opened up to all students with a special business program ficus (if I am not mistaken.) NUIN is for one semester, while NUBound is a year long program.
I think my son is overthinking the whole test optional thing but this is his tentative plan. Thoughts? Wise strategy or too risky?
My son plans to ask NU admissions if he should submit his 1450 SAT. He anticipates they will say no (whether it’s because they want to inflate their stats or because they really don’t value these test scores as much as they used to.) He is worried they will assume he has a low score but is hopeful being a National Hispanic Merit Scholar will at least signal to them he did pretty well on the PSAT. He is also planning to attach a resume to his common app. He currently lists his SAT score on the resume. So he’s thinking this might be a win/win. NU will be happy they don’t have to include his 1450 and they can keep inflating their stats. He “wins” by showing them the 1450 on his resume (which he is actually proud of) but it’s not going to impact the admissions process negatively, just lets them know he is in the ballpark of their averages.
In my opinion NEU has played the rankings game well, and done a bunch of other things to make them look very selective (all successfully, because they’ve become a very popular school).
Asking applicants to submit scores only if they’re above the 75th percentile, only serves to continue raising the scores range. I can’t figure out why they’d want to do this except to get people who look at their published score ranges going “wow, look at those high scores - NEU is so elite”, which is of course, exactly what they want.
Yes, you are spot on! I personally DO NOT like these marketing games at all (a real turn-off IMO)and my advice to my son, and anyone over 1400, is to submit scores DESPITE this push. Having said that, it is a top school of his so I respect him wanting to “play their game” if it benefits him.
That sounds like a fantastic idea! A great way to show off his impressive achievements, and without any risk. Let us know what he hears from admissions
I think they’re coop program has increasingly proven to be their strength and in recent years, their very proactive approach to covid. Their focus on international travel and programs was areal draw for my children. They were also one of few schools that was open to classes (hybrid style) due to their $50M investments starting Fall, 2020 which imo made them even more popular with recent classes. Every school plays the ranking game, you cannot blame them. I work at a UC and every UC plays the ranking game.
Frankly, COVID and lack of testing options for incoming students has pushed the TO programming. A lot of schools are in this weird flux, some (like UCs) have just chosen to forego them altogether going forward… it’ll be interesting to see how testing plays out in the end. But NU def attracts higher stat students, and has even shown how in 2011-12, NMF students got full tuition; the scholarship has winnowed down over the years and now NMF is not guaranteed any additional merit aid. Partly (I think) bc so many high stat students come to NU, but also bc testing is less relevant (and deemed unfair to many). Overall, their merit aid packages are also a big draw to the school.
Even though I don’t agree with schools moving to TO ( In my opinion, standardized testing is the most fair way to measure kids across the board), I would not conclude that making them look more elite was the only purpose. I really don’t see any significant difference between 33-35 and 34-35. There might be other reasons we just don’t know. Also, almost all schools play the ranking game. NEU has been following the rules in the game, not like some other schools that intentionally or unintentionally lied.
I have never thought about NEU before, but it was the school that my son wanted to go. The only thing I knew about NEU before was 1) the article about NEU playing the ranking game in 2014 and 2) a decent school for middle-class families. That was it. A lot of people say NEU did a good job in marketing the school. To me, it is just the opposite. First of all, most people haven’t heard about this school before. Second, if they have, then it was that “gaming” article. I honestly think they did a pretty bad job in marketing.
However, as I started learning more about the school, other than just the superficial marketing stuff and other people’s opinion, I have started finding more good things about the school that I didn’t realize before., the things that may or may not be measured in the national ranking but definitely very important for my son.
Of course, there are many things I don’t like about NEU, the housing and their websites which literally drives me crazy sometimes, but I believe my boy made the right decision for him. Definitely not for everyone, it is a very good fit for him.
No, I didn’t say schools went TO to look more elite. I was specifically addressing the point about NEU recommending applicants with scores below their 75th percentile to not submit. That doesn’t seem completely above board to me.