<p>So right now I find myself facing a decision I never thought I would have to make: choosing between the honors colleges at Penn State and Northeastern. For those of you who don't know, Penn State's Honors College, Schreyer, is ridiculously hard to get into (even the kids at my high school who will be attending Ivy League schools next year were rejected) and considered quite prestigious in Pennsylvania. I swear I must have gotten in on a fluke. Schreyer students are treated practically like gods by the administration, and get first pick classes, the best advisors, good dorms, study abroad opportunities, and amazing research opportunities. I won't go into detail about Northeastern's program, as I assume everyone here will have a decent amount of knowledge on the subject. So now I'm faced with two polar opposite schools both with amazing opportunities, but no idea where I would be happier and where I would have the most opportunities. City school vs. rural school, medium-sized vs. huge, apathy vs. schools spirit, hockey vs. football...I've overwhelmed!</p>
<p>Penn State is higher ranked by most lists and #1 in job recruitment and is building an ice hockey stadium for its new ice hockey team for next year. From an alum whose #1 son is studying architectural eng at PSU and #2 son was also accepted into Schreyer this week. Congrats on this excellent acceptance!</p>
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<p>Penn State also treated Joe Paterno as a god.</p>
<p>Do you want to live in the middle of an exciting big city or at the most remote major university in the nation? Only you can answer that.</p>
<p>Also, what is the bottom line cost of each school and how much debt will you have at graduation?</p>
<p>Tom, you know as well as I do that my “god” comment was in reference to the special opportunities afforded to Schreyer students as opposed to regular Penn Staters. I don’t see why you had to bring up the Sandusky scandal when it does not pertain to this discussion. Regardless, there are only about 1,800 Schreyer students and those lucky few are given a world of opportunities. I know Northeastern offers many as well, but I am unsure as to which school would give me the best springboard for the rest of my life. I plan to major in mechanical engineering, if that makes a difference. I personally would rather reside in a city (and I do love Boston), but I am wary of giving up “the college experience.” </p>
<p>Concerning the cost, Penn State would cost about $80,000 and Northeastern $67,000. Of course, the coop would decrease Northeastern’s cost by about $40,000. My wonderful parents are willing to pay for all of Northeastern and most of Penn State, leaving me with $0 in debt if I go to Northeastern and $20,000-25,000 if I attend Penn State.</p>
<p>Hi confusedtodd. First of all, congratulations! Those are both great schools, and you will come out with a quality education and a lot of great honors experiences from either one. I recently graduated from Northeastern in the Honors Program, and my sister is currently a freshman in Schreyer at Penn State. I absolutely LOVED Northeastern and she absolutely LOVES Penn State. They are two completely different schools, so I think that the number one thing you should focus on while making your decision is the general college experience and environment. Have you visited both schools? If you haven’t visited as an admitted student yet, I’d suggest giving them each another look. When you’re on campus, do you have a gut feeling of where you’d rather be for the next 4-5 years? If you do, then go for that one. </p>
<p>As far as the honors programs go, I would say that Honors at Northeastern is a great experience. You’ll live in International Village with fellow honors freshman, have access to honors advisors, who can give you personalized help on co-ops, study abroad, fellowships, research, and special programs to take advantage of, and take about 6 honors classes, which vary between special honors seminars and honors sections of regular classes. Some of NU’s best professors teach the honors seminars, and they are a very cool learning experience. That being said, I have to say that Penn State Schreyers is a very different honors experience. It has an incredible reputation for a reason. It is much more intensive, and as you mentioned, students are pretty much treated like gods by the administration. The way I see it, being in Honors was a nice perk to have as a Northeastern student. I had a great freshman year, loved the housing and opportunities, but it didn’t define my NU experience. My major, co-ops, study abroad, and student organizations did. It seems to me that Penn State Schreyer is something that really defines a student’s entire Penn State experience. Being an honors student at NU is a great perk, while being an honors student at Penn State is a BIG DEAL. If you want to make your decision based on the prestige and reputation of the honors program, go for Penn State. </p>
<p>Of course, being an honors student isn’t the only thing that will define your college experience. Northeastern is a medium sized private school right in the city of Boston. As a student at NU, I loved the size–it’s big enough that you constantly meet new people, but small enough that you’ll always see a friend of acquaintance if you’re ever walking around campus. NU students love taking advantage of the city and all the things it has to offer. You’ll end up exploring the city with friends, checking out Boston sports games and fun concerts, going to museums, and if you like to go out occasionally, you’ll end up at some BU, BC, MIT, Emerson, Tufts, or Harvard parties…not just Northeastern ones. Hockey games are fun during the winter (and free!) and there are a ton of different extracurricular activities to get involved with. You’ll still have the “college experience,” but it will be the “Boston college experience,” not the “Giant State School college experience.” </p>
<p>Co-op is the biggest thing that sets Northeastern apart. As an engineering honors student, you will have GREAT opportunities to get up to a year and a half of full time work in engineering before you graduate. I would say that upperclassman students at Northeastern are much more mature and aware of the real world than students at more traditional colleges. I did two co-ops, and I learned so much that I could have never picked up in the classroom. I also graduated with a killer resume, and I had a great job offer at graduation. Although you will certainly have internship opportunities at Penn State, I don’t think any other school in the country can compete with Northeastern’s co-op program. </p>
<p>Penn State, as I’m sure you know, is probably the polar opposite of Northeastern. School spirit is absolutely insane. I went to a football game last fall, and it was an amazing experience. I’ve never seen anything like it! The school is absolutely HUGE. Although you will find your niche, you’ll still be a part of that giant PSU community. The campus is big, pretty, and rural. The Schreyer dorms are in a great part of campus–right by the main street downtown. There are lots of great shops and restaurants, and if you ever want to buy ANYTHING with the Penn State logo on it, you’ll be all set. You’ll be pretty isolated–surrounded by the farms of central PA, but the whole town of State College is so big, and it’s ALL Penn State, that you’ll never feel bored. I have a lot of friends who went to Penn State, and their biggest complaint after graduation is that it’s tough entering the real world after living in the fun, seemingly-perfect “Happy Valley” for four years. Also keep in mind that Penn State, with so many students, is definitely a big party school. In general, Schreyers students are much more concerned with studying than partying, but the environment of Penn State on the weekends is pretty much defined by underage drinking. Will there be lots of other things to do on campus? Of course! Just be aware that the party scene is definitely going to be there. (Of course, partying happens at NU too…there are just less people!) </p>
<p>Finally, consider the money in your decision too. Graduating debt free would be pretty amazing. (Although what do you mean by saving $40,000 with co-op? Not sure how that would work.) </p>
<p>In short: prestigious honors program, huge school spirit, and the fun of living in “Happy Valley” vs. great honors program, real world experience, and the fun of living in Boston. </p>
<p>Best of luck with your decision! I’m sure that you’ll be happy no matter which school you end up at. Don’t forget, college is what you make of it!</p>
<p>Thank you so much for your input; it was really informative and helpful.</p>
<p>I personally think it depends on your personal goals. If your desire is to attend grad school or get a job in New England after college, I say you save the money and go for Northeastern. If your goal is to get a job after college and you don’t really have an idea where you want to live, I say you should go for Schreyer</p>
<p>Accepted to honors college at both ? Jeez what kind of stats did you have…
Are you in-state for PSU ? If yes I don’t see any reason why you would wanna pass up honors at Penn State…Northeastern is cool too but Schreyer’s wins by a long margin…</p>
<p>I was accepted to both too… While Schreyers definitely seemed like it had its act together more than NU’s honors program (since NU’s honors program was still in its infancy back then), I wanted to be in a big city and the thought of being in State College in the middle of Pennsylvania and farmland didn’t feel like a good fit. Figure out what you want from your experience and go with that… I was happy with my choice and had a great city experience… Go with the gut! As long as you’re proactive, get good grades and aggressively network while in school, you’re hard work will take you a lot farther than just the school reputation. Good luck!</p>
<p>Sorry for my lateness in responding. First, thank you everyone for your help. And collegejess, I received a full tuition scholarship from Northeastern. The amount I came up with for total cost is based on how much it would cost me to live in Boston for 5 years. But with the coop I should make at least an average of $13000 per coop, probably more by my third one, and as I do not have to put any money toward tuition, I can put the possible $40,000 in coop money toward the cost of living, greatly reducing my total cost. Please, if I missed a key fact or am just being extremely stupid, let me know.</p>
<p>You will need to pay housing, food, transportation and taxes on your coop pay. Taxes include federal, state, social security and unemployment .</p>
<p>Congrats on two excellent choices.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR using CC</p>
<p>One thing you will have to factor in with coop is transportation. Some of the best coop situations require a car. IF you limit yourself to coops in Boston, you may be passing up the best opportunities for your major.</p>
<p>I am partial to Northeastern , probably because my daughter has had wonderful experience there , and also because there is a life outside of the university too. Boston is a very exciting city to be in and the co-ops are very valuable. Not knocking PSU , but the remote location and the fact that the town revolves around the school would seem boring</p>