Again – tens of thousands of kids graduate from good universities and go into the work force without once uttering the word “co-op.” Let’s not glorify co-op too much (and I say this as the mother of a Northeastern grad.) When deciding between Northeastern and any other good school, “fit” should be a paramount concern, because there IS a vibe/atmosphere difference between a co-op centered school and a more traditional university. Both will lead the good student to the same place (employment or grad school) – just in a different way.
And I’ve hired thousands of new grads in the last 30 years and only a small percentage of them had the word “co-op” on their resume. As far as a corporate employer is concerned, what you did is more important than the nomenclature. And guess what? Kids still get hired without internships, co-ops, etc. Staying on campus and working for a professor editing a book, working in a lab, a summer job giving tours to fourth graders at a museum, getting promoted to night manager at the pizza restaurant you started working in at age 17- these are all fine ways to demonstrate initiative, leadership, etc.
You don’t need a “co-op” to do that.
Co-ops and interships (and other things like blossom’s examples above) help the job prospects. NEU requires “experiential learning”, which is often but not always co-op. That can be done in many ways elsewhere too.
I was concerned that DD, an Econ major, went straight through her last years of college w/o internship etc. However for two years she had a part time campus job doing IT support and worked her way up to weekend supervisor. That probably helped her land her job after graduation.
Another advantage to co-ops etc is that they help the student refine preferences of career area and/or grad school.
thanks PengsPhils… those numbers seem like a wash to me, as a myriad of factors can account for a couple percentage points. (for instance, I spent my time planning a summer backpacking trip instead of looking for work… which I eventually started in November… my backpacking buddy was slightly more on top of things and had grad school lined up)
Northeastern and its co-ops are great opportunities for students… I just don’t believe a co-op is the holy grail.