Hey everyone! I am majoring in public policy. I got accepted into Cornell and Northeastern, but I can not figure out where to go. Just for context I am a black girl from a low income background that is very bubbly and outgoing…Here is what I am thinking so far.
Cornell
Pros:
ivy league
alumni network
internship opportunities
Cons:
location
don’t really connect with the people
northeastern
pro:
boston
co-op
job opportunities after graduation
people
city transportation
beautiful campus
It is difficult to turn down an Ivy. Studies say that black students get more benefits from going to a prestigious school than other groups of students.
All that said, it you feel more comfortable at Northeastern, it is still a highly ranked school and being comfortable is important. My son is a sophomore at Northeastern and loves living in Boston.
You are choosing between two good options so you really can’t go wrong. Maybe reach out to Cornell and see if you can speak to more students to see if your first impression was valid.
kind of hard to compare a non ivy to an ivy - Cornell is too good to pass up, not only the education but the network is what is going to help you in the long run. again, if price is an issue, that is up to you and your family but if not, it shouldn’t even be a question that Cornell should be the front-runner
This is from a March 2019 NY Times article on whether elite colleges are actually better than other schools at educating students or whether their students do so well after college because they get to choose already accomplished students for admission. The answer was that students who were admitted to an elite but attended a different school were just as accomplished as those who attended elites with one exception:
Quote: But there was a crucial exception. There were strong benefits for the subset of black and Hispanic students, and for those whose parents had few educational credentials. It turns out that students who come from less privileged backgrounds benefit greatly from selective colleges. Elite higher education gives them social capital they didn’t already have. Unquote
Northeastern is top tier but not elite and the coop experience could provide an extra in.
Masters degree? Northeastern appears to have a robust masters program but I’m having a hard time finding an undergraduate public policy program on their site. Please show me where to look. The Cornell curriculum was easy to find and quickly showed up on the national ranking list. I’m only mentioning this as your pros and cons do not have anything academic listed! I think Northeastern is good for all the pros you mentioned, but I would add “easily distracted” to the list of cons per my knowledge of students who have gone there for the location and fun! It should be considered. If you are good at managing your time, then you can turn that into a pro!!
As something to consider (whichever school you choose), public policy programs often rely on the fields of political science, economics and philosophy for their foundation.
Go where you’re excited to be. Ranking matter only to a point, but your mental state matters so much more than any rankings. If you feel more connected to one place and you think you’ll be happier, then go with your heart.
You’re clearly talented to have such great opportunities, and I think you’ll THRIVE wherever you go.
My S21 has a similar choice, and is to focused on overall ranking and not enough on the best fit.
Good luck and congratulations!
absolutely, couldn’t have put it better myself - name and recognition only matter beyond a specific point. if you are not happy at Cornell, in your case, then don’t choose it - mental health matters!
Congratulations on these two incredible acceptances!
I saw your post on the Cornell forum expressing your understandable concerns about representation there. fwiw, by percentages, Cornell has nearly 2x as many BIPOC students as Northeastern. Cornell’s class of 2024 is 27% under-represented minorities. Both institutions are aware of the issues BIPOC students can face in PWI and are working to address them, however slowly or imperfectly.
I think all other things being equal Cornell will open more opportunities for you, and I hope during the decision window their outreach puts you at ease. Best wishes to you.
Congrats on two great acceptances. My son is a very happy freshman at Northeastern, socially and academically. I read on the parent FB groups many accounts of the outstanding co-op experiences and post-grad jobs students have gotten. Boston is a great college city. Cornell is more prestigious but I knew someone whose daughter had trouble making friends there. She did get a very good job with Google. Are the schools having accepted student days in person to help with your choice? I am sure you will thrive no matter where you go and good luck to you.