Please help! UMass Amherst Honors vs. Northeastern?

Hello. I’ve been back and forth between these schools and need advice to choose by the May 1 decision date!

I am planning on majoring in English on a pre-med track and going to graduate school afterwards. At UMass I would possibly double major in linguistics too, which I’ve heard is ranked #2 or 3 in the world by QS.

UMass would cost about 30k a year and NU would cost about 45k. I like both campuses. It comes down to which college would give me a better academic and study abroad experience (I’m hoping to minor in French/study in France).

tldr: I want to major in English on a pre-med track and minor in French. Should I pick UMass Amherst or NU?

How affordable for your family is that 30k? How affordable is 45k? Would you need to borrow more than the standard federal loans for either of them? If you choose the cheaper place, will there be money left over to hlp pay for med school or grad school?

I would NOT recommend Northeastern to anyone who wants to study English. And I say this as the mother of a Northeastern grad, so no anti-NEU vibes here. But Northeastern’s humanities aren’t the school’s strength… its pre-professional departments (engineering, business, etc.) are. I believe you will get a deeper humanities education at UMass Honors.

And check into UMass French program… It used to be done in conjunction with the Sorbonne.

I think nu.in has a French option. You should check. You can go to these program sites in spring semesters when the freshman in the fall program have finished.

@happymomof1 30k is definitely within an affordable range and there will be money to pay for grad school afterwards. 45k would be kind of a stretch, but not impossible. Thankfully, I wouldn’t have to take out loans in either situation.

I would go UMass Honors. It’s more affordable, the honors program there is very well respected, as are their humanities and foreign language programs. As mentioned before, Northeastern is a great option for pre-professional programs (as their niche is the co-op). They are very different schools in terms of environment, so remember to consider that when choosing (city school or traditional big state university).