Okay so I’m from New Jersey and plan on majoring in biochemistry and pursuing the pre-med track. I’m currently torn between attending NEU or NYU. I got into the honors program at NEU but NYU is closer to home so idk what to do. I have to decide soon where to go, and I honestly have no clue where i would be happier because I like them both equally. Here are a few questions I have – any help would be greatly appreciated
How strong are the science departments at NEU? Especially for biochemistry.
What opportunities are there for students pursuing pre-med?
Do most pre-med students get accepted to good medical schools?
Is co-op actually helpful?
How hard would it be to graduate in four years?
How is the social/campus life at NEU?
What is there to do in Boston? (I've heard it's a boring city)
First important question since you didn’t bring it up: what are the costs at each school and what’s your financial situation? Remember that medical school is very expensive. The rule of thumb that you’ll see on any pre-set forum is to follow the money. The courses you’ll take for pre-med will be very similar at any school, so it’s not worth breaking the bank to pay for undergrad when med school don’t care all that much where you got your bachelor’s degree.
But onto your questions. Northeastern has strong science programs for sure, and you’ll have a chance to connect with professors as well. There is also dedicated pre-med advising to make sure you’re on track for that. Northeastern is also really nicely situated a mile form some of the top hospitals in the country, many of which have volunteer programs aimed at pre-med college kids. There are also definitely clinical co-ops available on addition to research ones, but unless you have some sort of certification (CNA, EMT) there’s usually not much physical patient interaction (because safety and legality). Med schools like to see some research experience more and more now, so doing one of each could be nice.
Graduating in 4 years is definitely doable, even including 2 co-ops. They’re now saying that even if you don’t come in with any AP credit, you can do 4 years, 2 co-ops in any major. That said, it might not be your best option. Because the application for medical school is so ridiculously early, many many people take a gap year after a 4 year program (and I don’t mean just northeastern students. In general.) If you’re applying to start fall after you graduate, you’d be applying during spring of your junior year. But here’s the thing: you don’t have to decide that right away. I started out planning to do 1 co-op and ended up doing 3 and staying for 5 years.
Who told you Boston is a boring city?? Seriously, it’s a fantastic place. There are 300,000 college students in the area. There’s a ton of culture, parties, sports, whatever you want. What I like about northeastern is that it has a nice campus feel while still being right in the city. And there are a ton of clubs on campus for pretty much anything you’d want to be involved in (or start your own.)
Sorry, excessively long response, but I’m procrastinating on final projects and sleeping.