Northeastern vs. BU

Colleges and Universities A-Z Northeastern University
1

Posted this on the BU Forum and thought it’d do me good to post it on Northeastern’s too…

I got into both BU and Northeastern but can’t decide between them. I got the Trustee Scholarship at BU and the University Scholarship at NU, both of which are full-tuition scholarships but the Trustee Scholarship is much more selective (20 Trustee scholars as opposed to NU’s 120 University Scholars.) I visited both and generally liked both. I can’t make up my mind and it seems like nothing else I’ve read could either so I hoped a post would help me.

I suppose my own personal pro’s and con’s for each are as follows:
(GO AHEAD AND SKIP READING THEM IF YOU FIND THIS POST TOO LONG. I would just love to hear your opinion at the end.)

BU Pro’s:

  • Trustee Scholarship Selectivity
  • Campus is gorgeous
  • Name carries more prestigious
  • More school spirit
  • More notable Alum/Professors
  • Campus is a bit further from downtown Boston. Feels like that could give me seclusion from the city should I ever want it.
  • Larger. More opportunities. (opportunities which, as I’ve been told, might make up for the lack of a co-op.)
  • A traditional college experience (I will contradict myself later on when I “con” it and say that I might tire of the college experience quickly, but fear of getting bored of it doesn’t weigh down the fact that I still want it.)

BU Con’s:

  • Grade Deflation Policy (Is this even real? It’s a big thing to shadow from incoming freshmen if it is.)
  • Lack of a Co-Op Program. (I don’t want to tire of my college years early and I feel like four years of a traditional college life will weigh me down. I got bored and restless way too easily and end up looking forward to the next step much quicker than others do. The Co-Op seems to offer me a way out from the typical standstill of college that I really don’t want the traditional BU to have, but I fear does.)
  • Didn’t apply to the Honors program. (Thought it went hand in hand with the scholarship. I was wrong… But it’s not so important to me because the name of the Trustee scholarship is a bigger deal than that of the Honor’s.)

NU Pro’s:

  • Co-Op Program (add to the above the fact that the Co-Op program also offers me more independence financially, something of importance to me.)
  • Astonishingly raising its rank, name and prestige.
  • Secluded Campus
  • Scholarship is part of the Honors program.
  • Co-Op
  • Co-Op
  • Co-Op
  • Co-O…
  • Co-…
  • C…

NU Con’s:

  • I’d be one of 120 scholars in a class of 2600. (again, I’d be one of twenty in a class of 3,600 at BU - I obviously prefer more focalised attention and don’t want to get lost in the large scholars community at NU.)
  • Smaller Campus
  • Co-Op means I won’t get the college experience.
  • Co-Op also means that bonds between students and the school spirit won’t be as great.
  • Smaller

Do you see my dilemma? They’re both so similar, location-wise, opportunity-wise, rank-wise, and reputation-wise. Very few are refuting either and I want to hear the deep-rooted secrets that’ll sway my decision because I don’t want to regret in the years to come. It’ll be easy for me to do so with their proximity. For example, discovering the grade-deflation policy at BU really made me reconsider. I don’t want to be surprised is all.

If it helps, I’m hoping to double-major in Economics and Computer Science while also minoring (or maybe, just maybe triple-majoring) in International Relations. I might pursue research afterwise or try to work for NGO’s, government agencies, or charity organizations. But I also might pursue a Master’s degree.

I’ll keep updating my list as I come with new pros and cons. I don’t care that one has more pro’s or con’s than the other because they both end up with the same weigh in general.

I really need help with my decision otherwise, I wouldn’t be posting this. I hope this also helps future/current others in a somewhat similar situation; Not enough of BU vs Northeastern is out there.

Anyway, THANK YOU!! Sorry for the long post but I hope you can help.

2

NEU CS student here, made the same choice minus Trustee/Scholars part. Obviously I have some bias, but last year I was in the same objective state. Here’s my opinions:

BU:

  • Name carries more prestigious
  • Campus is a bit further from downtown Boston. Feels like that could give me seclusion from the city should I ever want it.
  • Larger. More opportunities. (opportunities which, as I’ve been told, might make up for the lack of a co-op.)

NEU:

  • Secluded Campus
  • Co-Op means I won’t get the college experience.
  • Co-Op also means that bonds between students and the school spirit won’t be as great.

I would dispute those.

NEU’s name is about equal at this point. US News has them equal with NEU rising if you look at rankings as an indicator of prestige. I would venture that by graduation the prestige could be reversed.

As far as locations go, I think they are about equal in distances. The campuses are significantly different but I feel like you have a good handle on which you prefer.

As far as opportunities, both are large research universities. They won’t differ that much in opportunities except for the co-op program obviously. Many clubs actually have chapters at both BU and NEU and work together or face each other in competitions.

NEU’s campus is hardly secluded. It has two T lines and within 15 minutes walking distance has tons of great restaurants, Newbury Street, Fenway Park, and the Prudential center. NEU has more of a campus space, but it’s still right in the middle of the city.

You don’t completely lose out on the tradition experience at NEU. There’s still freshman dorms, greek life (less than BU for sure but it is there), parties, tons of clubs and organizations, and all the things that go with college. The difference is that you transition faster to professional life. So the traditional college experience is here, it just lessens as you start to do co-op.

Many students are still on campus when on co-op. You don’t leave the community when you go on co-op in most cases. Students know that co-op happen, and friend groups stay intact over the years because of this. I would agree that BU has more traditional school spirit, but it’s not because of co-op.

Nothing will compare to co-op when it comes to opportunities. Especially in CS / Business, you will make $20 to $30 an hour or more for six months of full time work. No internship will offer you that. I think that is a true difference between BU / NEU. Also, NEU’s career services is ranked #1 in the US. You won’t get any better opportunities elsewhere beyond say alumni networks and prestige of Ivy Tier schools. BU is not in that category.

I have heard the same on grade deflation at BU. I don’t have any first hand confirmation, but that info isn’t something uncommon to hear.

I think you are overvaluing the 20 versus 120 comparision. In either scenario, you will be the primary focus of the school at an individual level. If anything, the 120 means that there will be more peers to participate in events with. Many people turn down ivies for NEU’s scholars program. While you may get very slightly more attention at BU based on the numbers, I think that in either scenario you will have all the attention you need/want.

Both CS and Business are top programs at each school, I would consider that a wash, though I do prefer CS here and is part of the reason I chose NEU over BU. I also think you’re right that Honors is inconsequential at either school with the better program trumping it. I would knock those off of not lists as pro/cons.

I think you are going about this the right way. Neither would be a regrettable choice. Personally I always advocate for the co-op / better opportunity route in general school choices, but that’s a personal preference. If yours matches, go NEU. If you want the full traditional experience, go BU.

Any questions feel free to ask! Hope that helps! If you want any info on the CS program, check the linked post:

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/18319035/#Comment_18319035

3

Both good and similar schools that are getting harder to get into. you should not focus on which one and program is more selective. etc. That kind of thinking is not helpful on choosing the most rewarding, inspiring and enjoyable experience. I would visit both campuses, go to classes, spend the night in a dorm and go with your gut/heart. Its that simple, do not over analysis.

For whatever its worth, my daughter’s impression (which is not right or wrong, just what she thought for herself) is that people at Northeastern were very friendly and very comfortable with themselves, NEU and what they were studying ett. At BU she thought people had more of a chip on their shoulder and less comfortable with BU. Least favorite Administrations office, very marketing and sales focused.

4

Go to Northeastern

5

I’ve never heard anyone call the BU campus gorgeous, not even BU people.

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TomSrOfBoston Very narrow campus,feels like rats scurrying up the main drag when classes let out. Read student reviews online. Common theme, big classes, impersonal and expensive, lack of community. I would suggest quality state schools or LAC’s.

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@DODIAT The OP has full tuition scholarships at both NU and BU.

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TomSrOfBoston - I gave those thoughts at 3:18 today (read the thread before you comment, ha!). My last response was to your campus feel comment. I went and read student reviews…a little overwhelming on the BU side.

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I agree with a lot of the points PengsPhils made, but I want to clarify some and add my own points.

I made this same decision two years ago so I can speak to you from a point of view that could be quite beneficial. Why is name brand important? Essentially to get that stellar job after you graduate, right? The thing is that with NEU’s co-op program, if you work hard enough and be as much of an opportunist as possible you will be able to pack on those stellar names from as early on as your 2nd year of college which is an invaluable opportunity. With all of the experience gathered on your resume by the time you graduate, the college you attended will not even matter as much. However, that point can be disputed considering how rapidly Northeastern has been growing as of late. PengsPhils mentioned that you can get paid $20-$30, but for the first co-op I would say you would more realistically get paid around $15-$17 which is not to discourage you from shooting for top brand name companies like Apple and KPMG. It all depends on how much work you’ve put in.

I do agree that the faculty at BU and the alumni network are much more reputable. That is something that cannot be refuted. Also, BU is more campus-centric as most students are involved in campus organizations while at Northeastern most of the population is not involved with campus clubs. There is not much community/unity with Northeastern, because many kids are constantly leaving campus and going abroad, on co-op, or on a dialogue and it gets hard to maintain consistency with clubs (e-board for most clubs changes every semester). There are a couple weekends in September when the campus is lively and everyone is out on the quad but when it gets colder it becomes less and less unlikely to see a noticeable campus culture. The rest of the time, everyone is basically doing their own thing. Most clubs are just developing (for being one of the top 20 business schools, we just got business frats established last year) but you could be part of the process to bring your ideas to grow student life and further develop clubs!

Also, co-op does nOT mean you won’t get the college experience. More students than you would imagine do co-op in Boston and attend club meetings and campus events after work. At the end of the day, you need to decide based on what mindset you have going into college. Do you want to develop professionally and gain invaluable work experience while also going to school on a well-defined campus in one of the most amazing cities in America while learning from some of the best of the best? Or do you prefer the classic college experience while learning from some amazing professors, a booming student life, but a scattered campus? (Sorry, I’m a bit biased!) Both are fantastic schools and I wish you the best of luck in this decision!

10

Just want to point out to the above post, entirely disagree that NU isn’t involved with campus clubs/organizations. Most everybody I know is very involved in at LEAST one, and a member of multiple. A capella, Greek life, interest based clubs, skiing/hiking, debate, student government, cultural orgs, dance groups, improv, theatre; I know people involved with each of those just within the few doors down my hall. BU can’t be campus centric, their campus doesn’t have a center unless you’re talking about a lamp post halfway down the long street that is BU’s “campus”.

Not going to refute the other things- BU has really great faculty, and it’s definitely more of a traditional college experience (well, traditional city college experience), but student involvement is not a weak point for NU.

11

reading the reviews about boston university really made me gasp a little :/. i am just going to take it with a grain of salt and hope my experience isn’t like that if i go there as a gt… :confused:

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@novafan1225 I apologize for generalizing the whole student body here and making a statement about lack of involvement in clubs. I am also only speaking directly from my own experience. I am heavily involved in a business frat, a mentorship program for young girls in communities around Boston, and an activist club. I hold e-board positions in all these clubs and in addition I have started a mental illness awareness campaign and am working on a case team. However, all of my freshman year i noticed that it was hard to see consistency in the clubs and as the executive board changed every semester the club dynamics changed, there was more conflict and disorganization and it was tough to be actively involved in some of the clubs as the officers got lazy about meetings and putting on events with coop and other things going on. My goal then and now is to better these organizations that I am so passionate about and I’m trying to make these goals a reality by being on the e-board, and that’s what I encourage any new huskies to do - find a problem you can fix and do just that! I love Northeastern and I will do anything to help make this community better for all of us

Regarding BU being campus-centric, I don’t mean in the physical sense but rather in the way that more events go on there than they do at northeastern and there’s generally more to do. they have more established clubs and Greek life (our business frat was modeled after theirs), and they have more facilities and resources (our dance studios at curry could be improved for instance) and also so many more options for food places :slight_smile:

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ugh i was prompted to read the reviews by DODIAT and i came across this http://insidebostonuniversity.blogspot.com/2015_02_01_archive.html

It’s really making me consider my choices now…

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go neu

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Have you talked with any of the current NEU Scholars @imonmyway to get their perspective? My son was accepted to BU, but with only a $20K scholarship, and the NEU Scholars program and we’ve been doing research but not so much in comparison to BU, so not sure what BU Trustee has to offer.

We are very impressed however, with what the NEU Scholars program offers in special attention, counseling, mentoring and research opportunities, including funding for research. Add on the $6K for expense reimbursement for a foreign country Coop. We have also found out that many of the Scholars students have rejected Ivy League schools for NEU so you would be in very good company. Also, the upper-classmen Dorms are apartments with a living room and kitchen and NEU guarantees Dorms for 4 years, which given the cost of living is a big deal.

I am also puzzled that you think that the buildings along, and off a main street, that make up BU would be considered gorgeous as didn’t see BU that way and thought that NEU seemed to offer more of a regular college campus feel.

I would also venture to say that based upon current trajectory, that by the time you graduate, NEU could be considered a more prestigious school to graduate from. It certainly is currently more selective than BU on admittance.

The biggest draw for NEU though is the COOP so how you feel about that should probably be a major factor in your decision.

16

I think the OP may be confusing BU with BC.

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These are basically peer schools. What are the requirements to keep your scholarship. BU is notorious for making it really difficult (3.5 GPA?). Northeastern only requires a 3.0 which allows you to take more risks and explore. If you’re not going to explore in college, when are you going to?

In terms of campuses, they are equal, they are walking distance from each other. They both have a Green-line trolly running through them. Northeastern has more green space and the Fens. BU has the esplanade.

Frankly, I’d favor Northeastern because of co-op and I suspect its easier to keep scholarship.

18

@TomSrOfBoston OP got the undergraduate class size correct, so I think he is talking about BU. Some people like the campus, it’s not a character defect or anything.