Northeastern vs Wake vs Villanova

Hey guys I’m totally stuck between Villanova, Northeastern and Wake Forest right now. I’m going to major in finance so how do you think these schools compare? I probably like Boston the most, then Winston Salem, then Villanova. Other than that the co-op at Northeastern is great, Bloomberg just ranked Villanova #1 for business, and Wake is probably the most prestigious. My gut says Northeastern but any help is much appreciated!!

Outside of the south Wake Forest is virtually unknown.

Is cost an issue?

Cost is a factor but not a deciding one. Thanks for the reply!

I have to say, as someone from the south, Wake Forest seems like the least prestigious to me of the three. Villanova carries a lot more name recognition in my mind. Wake is a great school of course, but if you’re judging by name only, I don’t agree there.

For finance, NEU has a very strong program - so does Villanova, but I don’t think the difference is going to make or break anything - the co-op program works very well with business particularly with tons of great opportunities close by, as well as all over if you don’t want to stay in Boston - it’s nice to have lots of local options as a base, though.

All three are Top 25 undergrad business schools - there really isn’t a bad choice here. If you really feel you fit better at NEU, your gut agrees, and you are excited about co-op, go for it! Name and rank are helpful to get an idea of what schools are in the same league - don’t use them as gospel to stick to.

What are the price differences between the three? If one is significantly more expensive / cheaper, you may want to think about how you would feel fit/gut-wise at the other two.

My S was also trying to decide between Northeastern and Villanova (for Engineering). He loved the campus and the school spirit at Villanova and was especially tempted to commit especially after their Championship win (we are local to the Greater Philly area and it was hard not to be seduced by all the fanfare and media attention!) He also really enjoyed the professors he spoke with at Villanova. However, after a second visit to NU, he knew the people there were more his crowd and he was more excited about Boston. You can’t go wrong with either of those options, both are phenomenal schools. (Sorry, I can’t comment on Wake Forest.)

All excellent choices. S1 had NEU on the radar until the end. It was a matter of money. He is at Villanova and is very happy. The school seems to have tremendous momentum, outside of the basketball team.

Hey, Northeastern’s basketball team got into the NCAA tournament last year for the first time in something like 25 years! (And then we lost in the first rounds. But I still got to go to Pittsburgh for it!)