parent views on Chapman University and Northeastern University

<p>my son is trying to decide between these two universities. on visits he loved the classes he sat in on at NU and the experirntial learning concept but disliked boston and lack of open space. at chapman he loved the weather, size but expressed concerns about the apparent lack of academic guidance and ability to taste several majors. Any one have kids at these universities that can speak to their s/d experiences?</p>

<p>No direct experience but I’ve heard really good things about Chapman from a number of friends whose kids attend or graduated from there. It seems like the profs at Chapman take a real interest in getting to know their students and helping them find their strengths.</p>

<p>If he dislikes Boston - then he should not go to Northeastern - it is right in the middle of the city and the campus is loosely defined - the students use all of Boston as their campus. If he is not a city kid then it is not a good fit for him.</p>

<p>A friend’s nephew attends Chapman and is very happy there. He became quite ill and missed several classes leading up to a mid-term. Once he recovered, his professor met privately with him for 3 hours, went over all of the class material and set up a separate time to take his test. This would/could never happen at a larger university.</p>

<p>Plus, it’s well known that Chapman has the best food of any school in the area. Kids come down from UCLA to “study” with their friends so they can eat at Chapman.</p>

<p>One thing to consider is where he plans to live/work after graduation. I live in the Northeast and have never heard of Chapman, whereas Northeastern is well known. Employers on this side of the world would be more impressed with NE. I’m imagine the situation is quite different in California.</p>

<p>For students interested in film, especially film production, Chapman is ranked 7th in the U.S. It has phenomenal facilities and is well-connected to Hollywood.</p>

<p>My daughter is a student at Northeastern and loves it. It has been a wonderful experience for her - BUT a city school was a big requirement of hers. While Northeastern has one of the nicer campuses in Boston, it is definitely a city school. If he didn’t like Boston or it feels to cityish to him, he probably won’t be happy there. And our winter was really cold this year. As much as I love Northeastern and think it’s an amazing school, my son probably won’t apply because he wants more of a campus and more green space. It is a city school through and through.</p>

<p>Wow. This is a first. In all my years on cc, I have never run into a kid who disliked Boston. But if that be the case, welcome to SoCal!</p>

<p>btw: NEU’s big deal is the coop program, which is a great resume booster. As noted above, Chapman has a great film program.</p>

<p>My son LOVED Boston and only transferred back to CA because of film school. Boston’s an unbelievable college town regardless of which college you attend. But driving through hellacious LA traffic just to eat at Chapman? I am laughing out loud! UCLA is perched on the edge of lovely, upscale Brentwood. If I had the $$$ to spend on fuel to drive all the way down the 405 in stop-and-go traffic to the tiny town of Orange, I would really spend those $$$ instead by UCLA, not on campus fare. </p>