My S got an email that he is admitted into the NU.in program. Have any of you gotten that and do you know exactly why some students are put in the .in program and if there is anyway they can do this semester-abroad program later on in their career rather than as first semester?
Also, he is told that he will be joining the BioEngineering on the NU campus (Boston) starting from Spring which means he will have to be spending one semester abroad.
Any of you here have attended this .in program with the semester abroad? Is that a Northeastern Univ campus or some other Univ affiliated to NU? And do we get to see what courses he will have study there and who his batch/room mates will be etc etc? We are happy on one side that he has got into one of his top choices at the same time confused about the study-abroad-in-first-semester program.
Isn’t this program a sort of Deferred admission?
Also, for the past students, did any of you get any scholarship when selected for .in program or did it come later on?
Did this study-abroad program help when applying for CoOp program?
In general, how likely is a student going to get into a coop position when studying at Boston NU campus?
Thank you for any clarification any of you can provide – looking forward to it.
1st year here, didn’t do NUin but am a tour guide and have explained it a fair amount.
Essentially what Northeastern is offering you is a guaranteed spot in your class here in the Spring. To accept that spot, you go abroad to a partner institution in the fall. As an engineering major, you have a choice of Ireland, Greece and Australia. You take the same classes you would your first semester here, you just take them there instead and they transfer back. When you get back from winter break, you join us back in Boston with everyone else who went on NUin! There’s lots of programming to show you guys around and everyone who did the program ends up being so close with each other. The people I know that did it absolutely loved it.
Can’t say for sure, but I don’t believe there is financial aid for the first semester and I’m not entirely sure when you find out what package from Northeastern.
You’re pretty much guaranteed a coop. We have more coops than students going out on coop at any time. Submit your apps on time. If you don’t get an offer from your first round of applications, you can apply for more. You take an Intro to Coop class the semester before you go out and have a coop advisor to help you through.
@DIBM96 Hello! I am a 1st year who attended the Montreal, Canada site last semester, so I think I can help with some the first hand experience aspects.
As far as the abroad aspects, your son would be studying at a university in the host country that has developed a relationship with Northeastern and works closely with the university to create programs that will allow students to take classes that align with either their major requirements or fulfill NU core requirements. So you attend a fully functioning independent university, but it’s affiliated with NU. For instance, in Canada, I took classes at McGill University and was pretty much a full time student. For courses, it really varies by site as to what is offered, but every NUin student is required to take a Global Experience class that is taught by Northeastern staff and works on teaching students to become global citizens, and everyone usually takes some kind of course that teaches them about the culture/history of whichever site they are at. Rooming situations, again, vary greatly by site. Some have apartment style living where several NUin students have a common kitchen and bedrooms, some have NUin students living with students attending the host university who are originally from the country, and some have them living in a hotel. A great way to find out more of the specifics for all the sites is on the NUin program website: https://www.northeastern.edu/nuin/
NUin isn’t Deferred admission. You are still a full Northeastern student, you’re just studying abroad first semester. It also can’t be considered deferred admission since you begin taking courses that count towards graduation as soon as you begin college- you’re just doing it in a different country! But it really still feels like you’re surrounded by a NU community while abroad because you become super bonded with the other NU students you go abroad with and the site staff works really hard to keep you connected with the Boston campus. For instance, last year, all of the sites had our very own version of Husky Hunt (a huge scavenger hunt that goes all over Boston and is a huge deal here at the Boston campus) in our own cities.
Personally, I did not receive a scholarship, and I am not aware of any who did. I have heard of people who were able to apply financial aid after returning from abroad, but couldn’t apply their financial aid first semester due to international education making it difficult to use federal aid. I think I have heard that students can apply for certain scholarships once they’re back in Boston, but I’m not really sure. Probably your best bet on this front would be to contact the NUin offices- they’re super helpful and great at answering questions.
While I haven’t applied to Co-op yet, I definitely think that my NUin experience will help me for multiple reasons. First of all, it looks pretty amazing to be able to write on your resume that you studied abroad first semester of freshman year. Even more importantly, I gained so much confidence and self-awareness through NUin that I know is going to help me in my Co-op search. Also, my older brother did NUin four years ago and he did two pretty awesome Co-ops, so it certainly doesn’t hurt your resume!
I definitely can relate to the confused-happy feeling. It can be a lot to take in. My advice would be to do as much research as possible, and attend either an Inside NUin info session or one of the Welcome Days if you can. Both give you the opportunity to hear directly from the program directors and interact with other program alumni like myself. Also, what was super helpful for me was watching the videos that all students are required to make about their experience at the end of the program. You can find them by searching on Youtube for “NUin (what ever site you’re interested in) 2016.” Good luck with the decision, and congratulations to your son!
Regarding NUIn’s effect on coop it may depend on your field. Having done an international experience early on would be an eye catching line on a resume and a great talking point during an interview. It would show that the student is adventurous and willing to sample the unknown as opposed to someone looking for a 9-5 job.
Thanks to all of you for your prompt and helpful responses.
@TragicComedy : Thank you for all the time taken to respond to each of my queries.
The letter says you are admitted into the NU.in program with an opportunity to study abroad the first semester.
My complaint is that if it is an opportunity offered to study abroad, the student must be allowed to say No if he or the family chooses not to for various reasons? From my understanding, if the student does NOT do the first semester abroad program, then the admission to NU itself gets rescinded.
That is such a brute-force method ?
I wonder if there has been anyone who has asked the Univ admissions office to see if they can do this semester abroad later in the future years?
@DIBM96 I agree with you. It always seemed strange to me that NEU does this. I was not aware that there was no aid for the international leg. I wonder if that is true to for any Merit aid received. That could make it tough for families to afford.
I think it is just like you say. Study abroad for the first semester or do not come here. A bit harsh IMO.
I am not sure if your local but I know of an individual that drove 1 hour each way to avoid this requirement. The explanation was that they did not have dorm space so they sent people abroad. He decided to be a commuter for the first semester.
@MassDaD68 That is not true, You cannot avoid the international fall semester by being a commuter student. And limited dorm space is not the reason for offering NUIn. It is an alternative entry path similar to Cornell’s guaranteed sophomore transfer acceptance or BU’s CGS January-London program.
I am surprised at the lack of information people have about NUIn admittance. Northeastern explains it clearly on their Admissions Deadlines and Decisions page, they ask you about your preferences for it on their Common App, they repeat again on the student’s portal that it is one of the decision outcomes that you may receive. I agree that rather than saying you are admitted “with an opportunity,” they should have said you are admitted “with a requirement,” but the notion that Northeastern misled you or that it’s a “brute-force” method isn’t fair. My son was denied at Northeastern and would have been thrilled to be offered NUIn. I did read some of the previous posts about it and they were overwhelmingly positive experiences. (Many students, like your son, are unhappy with the decision however). I also recall reading on here that financial aid had been offered at the same level but federal gifts (such as Pell grants) were not. Northeastern has detailed information on their website about NUIn including a FAQ.
While it can be difficult to break away from the allure of a typical freshman 1st semester and fathom the idea of having to survive on your own for four months, in some ways, I actually found the requirement of going abroad better than the option. If NUin had been optional, I probably wouldn’t have chosen to, and I think many others would not either. By having it be mandatory, however, I ended up taking a step which I probably would have never taken otherwise and ended up growing and maturing more than I ever thought possible. I certainly agree that it can seem rather harsh to have to either study abroad or give up Northeastern- even after I made my decision I would sometimes feel sad that I couldn’t be on campus in the fall. Ultimately though, I think I enjoyed my fall semester in Canada more than I would have if I were in Boston. And if you think about it, Northeastern has to be firm in respects to admission decisions and how they are carried out or else it would be extremely confusing and messy for everyone involved. It also begins a student’s process of maturing even before going abroad because you really have to do some thorough soul searching and consideration to figure out if the program is right for you. Really though, if I had the opportunity to do NUin again, I would in a heartbeat.
@TragicComedy :I liked your explanation. That’s true too.A question is if those students who went abroad for the first semester missed out on forming friendships with peers, faculty hereon Boston campus?
Also, I am wondering if there is any scope for Scholarships/Merid Awards for NU.in students and will this info come a while after the admissions are announced. I dont think he will qualify for Financial Aid but wodnering if there is any form of financial assistance for .in students?
@TragicComedy : Based on your experience and others’, is it okay to say that NU.in candidates were good but for NU not as good to get into the Fall Semester at Boston and so the school wants such students to study outside and come back in Spring ? In berkeley and other Cali schools, some students do get admitted for Spring but the students can study anywhere until Spring and most of them stay on their respective campuses and take courses offered by the same school’s Extension division.
Also anybody can indicate what are the sample CoOp jobs that students from NU normally get into?
I mean is there a fixed set of companies that choose the students from this Univ?
As far as forming friendships, I think I actually formed stronger and more lasting friendships through NUin than I otherwise would have. When you are placed into a completely new countries 18 years old, everyone is looking for people to hang out with and find support through, so NUin becomes a type of family. All of you are going through the same thing and so friendships can end up being really strong. I am currently rooming one of my very good friends from Canada and stay in regular contact with the rest of my group that I formed. I know this to be true for many others. This works very well for transitioning back to campus because you already have a network of friends to fall back on. Northeastern is an extremely fluid campus though because of Co-op and the number of students who study abroad, so everyone on campus is very used to new faces popping up every semester, which makes it simple to fit back into the NU community. As long as you make sure to join clubs and put yourself out there, you will make connections. I have not had any trouble connecting with professors either- I think some of mine don’t even realize I wasn’t here first semester! I have heard this to be the case for the majority of NUin alumni as well.
I do not know too much about financial aid- my advice would be to contact the NUin offices, as they are extremely knowledgeable about everything to do with the program.
While NU has never explicitly explained what they look for in applications when placing applicants in NUin, I do not believe that NUin people are any less qualified or “the bottom of the heap.” This is an unfortunate rumor about the program which I do not find any merit in. Northeastern only accepts students who they feel are academically able to survive at NU- they could not accept someone who wasn’t up to par. I’ve also met some extremely smart and well rounded people in the program who could not be considered “unfit” for NU.I personally think NUin acceptances are based off of open-mindedness, a want for adventure, an interest in affecting change in the world, and the maturity to be able to live on your own for four months at 18 years old.
@DIBM96 Regarding sample coops jobs that is in an incredibly broad question. What major are you interested in. There are a few current upperclass students who follow this forum who may be able to help. For example one CC’er is a CS major and is currently on coop in Venice, CA. (hint)
@TomSrOfBoston : My son is admitted into BioEngineering and he wants to get into Medical school eventually and so will be doing preMed requirements. And so in fact, my next question would be to see how the preMed advising/preparation is at NU and also the acceptance rate to Medical school from NU.
I am hoping if he does not get any financial aid, he can atleast get a Coop that can partially help pay the undergrad loan and so any concrete info abotu Coop would be very helpful in making our decision.
@TragicComedy : Thank you for the detailed info – that really helps!
Co-Op is the main reason people attend NEU. The actual job experience you gain while on the Co-Op program is instrumental when graduation comes and you are competing against many other school grads. The beauty is double if you wish to work for the Co-Op company after you graduate. Many students look at it as an extended interview. You get to demonstrate how wonderful you are and how hard you work.
As was previously mentioned there are more Co-Op openings than students to fill them. Your in a different position because Pre-med grads do not look for employment after graduation, they look to get into Med School. Their stress comes after Med school graduation.
