I did NUin Canada this past fall and I do not know if they will change it, but most of the classes were exclusively NUin students. There were only a handful of course offerings that were legitimate McGill courses, most of the classes were NUin only and were not even on McGill’s campus. They even sent students taking science courses like Chem, Bio, and Physics to another school (Dawson College). The overall academic quality was underwhelming. There was very little interaction with McGill students. In addition, the housing was ~15 minutes from McGill’s campus. This might change. Many of us ended up slightly behind on our majors , I am staying both summer semesters to compensate. If you are looking to jump right into your major, NU.in does not really offer that, but it is a good way to knock out a lot of general electives. Another thing to note is your GPA while abroad doesn’t transfer. There are certainly a lot of positives of doing NU.in, but the transition back can be a little rough. It can take a lot of work to break out of the “NUin bubble.” I cannot speak to other sites, but I am not sure if I would recommend Canada given my experience.
My son was admitted to NUin so I did some research. While it is common practice at many colleges, it serves just 2 purposes: boost the ranking of the school and make sure that all spots are filled in the spring.
First: stats and numbers for the NUin students (who are not considered NU students in the first semester) are not reported to US News so it looks like NU admits less students and with higher SAT/ACT (since in general the NUIn students have slightly lower stats). Second: many first year students drop out after the fall and having a guaranteed influx in the spring is a way to keep the numbers constant for financial reasons.
We will not let our son be someone that for $68K+ is just helping with numbers and rankings! Off to another college in the fall.
Northeastern has one of the highest freshman retention rates in the US at 97%. The space available on campus is (mainly) because of seniors graduating in the fall given Northeastern’s schedule due to co-op.
@otamatone what was your major?
@momfromitaly NUIN also does allow students the opportunity to attend NEU who would otherwise not be admitted. From all I have read, NUIN is a great opportunity to study abroad early and start their NEU experience. NEU is by no means a traditional learning environment, so for some kids, NUIN is just fine. Once students are on campus they are just the same as everyone else. At NEU, people come and go regularly with international travel, coops, etc. that is a just part of the normal flow at the college. Best to your and your child wherever they land!
Cybersecurity. This factors into why I have to stay both summers, not all majors will have to do that.
I was also recently accepted to the N.U.in program as a business major. Where did your son look for more information on the offered locations? I’ve been using NEU’s webpages, but they don’t seem to offer any information. For example, you mentioned that he knew the size of the groups going to each location. Where did he find that information?
Thank you!
I’m also a business major and McGill has a really good business program so I’m hoping that classes will be held there…I’ll be sure to ask lots of questions about it at the open house next week
@otamatone Thank you! Also, how was the waking to class and food situation? I saw it’s a 15min walk and that you have to either cook or buy food and I was wondering how that was…Also was the walk bad?
The walk sucks at first but then you get used to it. There are multiple grocery stores within a reasonable distance of the residence too. Cooking isn’t honestly too bad, especially if you do it with friends. You do have to provide basically all your own cookware though. You’ll also be near a bunch of restaurants.
Ok thank you!
Has anyone gone to the NUin program in Sydney, Australia and what is your opinion about it?
My son went to NU.IN Dublin in Fall 2017 and loved his time in Dublin not to mention his trips to Switzerland, France, Italy. I look at it as a once in a lifetime experience. All his classes resulted in credits toward his degree, although his GPA was “neutral”. The transition back to Boston second semester can be challenging, but he off set that by joining a Club sport, pledging a frat, and making new friends. He is now a sophomore in the Business school and still loves NU. His semester in Dublin will be something he will remember for the rest of his life. I understand people being turned off by “NU.IN students SAT/ACT scores don’t count” and the fact that NU is expensive, but if you can get past both of those issues, it really is an awesome experience for the right person.
@Jesse4564 can you explain what you mean about the NU.In student’s SAT/ACT scores not counting? Thanks
@symonaidanasa - This is pure speculation on my part from what I have read on-line. The way I understand it is that when NU calculates the average SAT of their incoming freshman class, they only count the SAT scores for freshman that are at the Boston campus when the fall semester starts. So the SAT scores for the 1100 students that are NU.IN are not counted. People make a big deal about this, but I don’t really buy into it…Overall NU.IN can be a wonderful experience for the right student and NU prepares students well for the real world.
@energi12 He received a lot of that information at the accepted students day. They had a chart that showed information about each site.
https://www.northeastern.edu/nuin/what-is-nuin/admitted-student-events/
He also watched the videos the students posted on youtube. If you google Nuin and the site location on youtube you will see the videos the kids made. It gives you an idea of the location.
@Jesse4564 I don’t buy into it either. My son got a 33 on his ACTs and a 4.25, so I don’t know why they wouldn’t want to include that. And, at the end of the day, and especially because it’s a co-op school, none of this really matters. Everyone is always coming and going at NEU. That’s what makes it so cool.
Some stats might come into play but I also think it’s your child and their app and if the committee sees something a bit more open to a new experience right out of the box. I also wonder if FA plays a role because there’s no FA available to finance that semester abroad. Just speculation of course.
My son scored 35 on ACT, but also was placed in NU.In. He did select he was open to that on the common app, not realizing that he would automatically be considered for that if he wasn’t selected for the Boston campus.
I had a 4.4 GPA and a 35 ACT. All of my friends from N.U.in are just as accomplished, so the statement that N.U.in students have slightly lower stats is bs. I definitely think that NU tries to protect their yield and will offer N.U.in to students who they feel might have applied to NU as a safety. I also think they put people in N.U.in who can afford it since aid isn’t applicable and it costs $35k plus living expenses. Luckily, my parents supported my choice to go to NU over other schools where I got merit aid. I had a huge focus on global issues in my app, so it makes sense that NU took a gamble and thought I would accept the offer. They also look for students who are independent, leaders, and risk-takers. It is a lot to be in another country the first time you are away from home. It isn’t for everyone. We are all NU students, we just started abroad. I personally had amazing experiences that I don’t think kids in Boston had, like dinner with President Aoun and Richard Damore (2 of my first LinkedIn connections). I hope this experience will be an advantage when I look for an International COOP. I am doing a Middle East DOC this summer, and I’m sure being abroad helped my acceptance into that program. I had a great GPA coming out of London, continued doing well in Boston, and I was offered a spot in the Honors program. I took multiple courses toward my major while I was abroad. Make sure you choose a location that will work for you and has interesting classes. The classes aren’t hard, but they aren’t worthless. Finally, I came back with a ton of friends and had absolutely no trouble transitioning. I think I have more close friends than students that were in Boston in September. I hope this is helpful for those of you who are trying to decide if N.U.in (or NU for that matter) is right for you. If your biggest concern is US News rankings, then go somewhere else. If you are interested in working hard and having a ton of opportunities available to you, then go to NU.