This is how Northeastern gamed the system

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:My DD applied to NU, really just because everyone else was and there was no supplemental essay. To our surprise, she got in - for NUin. At first we were super excited for her but then came to the conclusion that she should not go to Europe her first semester (for a variety of reasons) so I was sure that NU would let her just take first semester off and start second semester. I figured why wouldn’t they? I mean if she won’t be on campus first semester, why would they care? And with so many kids coming and going to coops, it seems it wouldn’t matter. Well, they wouldn’t let her and that was disappointing and convinced me that they are a money making operation. That’s not to say they aren’t attracting good students and don’t provide a good education, but I worried that it wouldn’t be the best experience. DD turned it down for a lower ranked school that gave her lots of merit aid.

They have marketed the NUIn and NUBound well and they are money makers fro them. A guaranteed flow of spring start and fall transfer students, who pay $~35-40K/semester while abroad for the experience. Most other schools do allow students to select where they take courses, or if they take a semester off, before starting in the spring.

You researched and decided it was not for your DD. Rankings do not matter that much. Your DD is at a school that's affordable that allows her to have the full 4 year experience. That can go a long way towards a successful college experience.

Tha ms for those kind words.it was an agonizing decision for her (made at 10:30pm May 1) but it was definitely the right one. Although her chosen school is lesser ranked, she’s in into their two best programs, ones that are highly regarded and which have very good job placement. I also think she will have a better experience there than at NU. Not to dump on the school, I just don’t think it was the right choice for her.

Rankings do not matter that much. Kids should go where they will fit in and that's for a variety of factors (including Cost) Kids who are happy at college do better---the more involved you are at college the more you get out of the experience in every aspect. My own kid knows they want the traditional experience of not living abroad any part of first year; they were excited about the coop experience at NEU but recognize as an engineer they can do that at almost any school they attend---they are not an extrovert and were concerned about fitting in on campus essentially as a transfer student soph year (got NUBound). Even before getting the decision my kid had decided that the campus might be too large for them and that 5-6K undergrad size is a better fit for them. Ultimately my kid is attending a school that is ranked ~20 higher, but also seriously considered WPI (not ranked nearly as high as it should be---amazing school) The attraction of Boston as a location was tempting, but my kid smartly (for them) choose a better fit, better ranked, smaller school despite the "not the best location". Each time we visited campus my kid lit up and I could just see something I did not see on any other campus (except their ED school which ultimately rejected them in RD). So Fit is extremely important.
If the parents have a positive attitude I find that goes a long way towards a kid being successful as well. So many kids think they are disappointing their parents because they didn't get into the "elite/perfect" school. And that's sad, because these kids with 1350+ SAT will do well wherever they go, if they choose to

This is good to know. Mine was initially interested for the coop aspect, but we are turned off by the over enrollment, the abroad situation and the crazy boosters who think it's an Ivy League rival. I'm all about being "true to your school," but there is some craziness out there. Can you share what school your kid chose? Also, can you add to thoughts on WPI? Thanks!

WPI and RPI were on my kids list.
Never applied WPI. Not a good part of Boston area, and clearly a step down from Northeastern.
Liked RPI better. Variety of good tech favored programs, but location is not good and looking kind of drepressing. Got in.
No need to consider these schools after getting in Northesatern(direct main campus).
I udnerstand the hesitation if got in as NUIn.

Nutty boosters like you are part of the reason we are turned off by NEU. Seriously?

WPR RPI are good solid schools but they are clearly a step or two down from Northeastern.  
Their acceptance rate is around 50%. There are reasons they are much less popular and selective.

WPI is a fabulous school and is not a step down from Northeastern at all. Acceptance rate has little if anything to do with the quality of the educational experience. Academically there is no difference among NU, RPI, or WPI. In fact, if a student wants the academic experience of a smaller college, wants a beautiful self-contained campus, and doesn’t want to have to deal with crap like NU Bound or N.U.in, then WPI in particular is a far superior choice.

I concur! WPI is an equivalent choice if not better for many engineering students. Definately better than the NUIn/Bound choices. Thankfully there are many of us who look beyond "rankings" and see the actual facts of what each school is like.

Um, no. Do not send your children to WPI. Ask how many suicides there were last year, and I promise you won't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD applied to NU, really just because everyone else was and there was no supplemental essay. To our surprise, she got in - for NUin. At first we were super excited for her but then came to the conclusion that she should not go to Europe her first semester (for a variety of reasons) so I was sure that NU would let her just take first semester off and start second semester. I figured why wouldn’t they? I mean if she won’t be on campus first semester, why would they care? And with so many kids coming and going to coops, it seems it wouldn’t matter. Well, they wouldn’t let her and that was disappointing and convinced me that they are a money making operation. That’s not to say they aren’t attracting good students and don’t provide a good education, but I worried that it wouldn’t be the best experience. DD turned it down for a lower ranked school that gave her lots of merit aid.

They have marketed the NUIn and NUBound well and they are money makers fro them. A guaranteed flow of spring start and fall transfer students, who pay $~35-40K/semester while abroad for the experience. Most other schools do allow students to select where they take courses, or if they take a semester off, before starting in the spring.

You researched and decided it was not for your DD. Rankings do not matter that much. Your DD is at a school that's affordable that allows her to have the full 4 year experience. That can go a long way towards a successful college experience.

Tha ms for those kind words.it was an agonizing decision for her (made at 10:30pm May 1) but it was definitely the right one. Although her chosen school is lesser ranked, she’s in into their two best programs, ones that are highly regarded and which have very good job placement. I also think she will have a better experience there than at NU. Not to dump on the school, I just don’t think it was the right choice for her.

Rankings do not matter that much. Kids should go where they will fit in and that's for a variety of factors (including Cost) Kids who are happy at college do better---the more involved you are at college the more you get out of the experience in every aspect. My own kid knows they want the traditional experience of not living abroad any part of first year; they were excited about the coop experience at NEU but recognize as an engineer they can do that at almost any school they attend---they are not an extrovert and were concerned about fitting in on campus essentially as a transfer student soph year (got NUBound). Even before getting the decision my kid had decided that the campus might be too large for them and that 5-6K undergrad size is a better fit for them. Ultimately my kid is attending a school that is ranked ~20 higher, but also seriously considered WPI (not ranked nearly as high as it should be---amazing school) The attraction of Boston as a location was tempting, but my kid smartly (for them) choose a better fit, better ranked, smaller school despite the "not the best location". Each time we visited campus my kid lit up and I could just see something I did not see on any other campus (except their ED school which ultimately rejected them in RD). So Fit is extremely important.
If the parents have a positive attitude I find that goes a long way towards a kid being successful as well. So many kids think they are disappointing their parents because they didn't get into the "elite/perfect" school. And that's sad, because these kids with 1350+ SAT will do well wherever they go, if they choose to

This is good to know. Mine was initially interested for the coop aspect, but we are turned off by the over enrollment, the abroad situation and the crazy boosters who think it's an Ivy League rival. I'm all about being "true to your school," but there is some craziness out there. Can you share what school your kid chose? Also, can you add to thoughts on WPI? Thanks!

WPI and RPI were on my kids list.
Never applied WPI. Not a good part of Boston area, and clearly a step down from Northeastern.
Liked RPI better. Variety of good tech favored programs, but location is not good and looking kind of drepressing. Got in.
No need to consider these schools after getting in Northesatern(direct main campus).
I udnerstand the hesitation if got in as NUIn.

Nutty boosters like you are part of the reason we are turned off by NEU. Seriously?

WPR RPI are good solid schools but they are clearly a step or two down from Northeastern.  
Their acceptance rate is around 50%. There are reasons they are much less popular and selective.

WPI is a fabulous school and is not a step down from Northeastern at all. Acceptance rate has little if anything to do with the quality of the educational experience. Academically there is no difference among NU, RPI, or WPI. In fact, if a student wants the academic experience of a smaller college, wants a beautiful self-contained campus, and doesn’t want to have to deal with crap like NU Bound or N.U.in, then WPI in particular is a far superior choice.

I concur! WPI is an equivalent choice if not better for many engineering students. Definately better than the NUIn/Bound choices. Thankfully there are many of us who look beyond "rankings" and see the actual facts of what each school is like.

Northeastern's ranking is not even that high, currently #49.
It was #42 a couple of years ago, but more students applied and yield went up significatnly when it went down to #49.
Also there are many of the higher ranked but much easier school to get in.

So when those high stat kids choose to attend Northeasetrn, it's someting much more than the ranking.
They are acually ones who look beyond "rankings" lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just visited Northeastern and gamed system or not, it's a very good school that can provide a ton of opportunities and experiences for students.

I also like their campus very much.

It was very apparent that they do sell themselves hard and that they really want as much money as they can get. Just take a look at their international students.

We are not sure if we are going to apply, but if my kid ends up attending NU, I do not think it would be an over-payment for an education.

Especially if you transfer in, which many students do.

OML don't you go talking sense on an NU or GU thread bc OP and his sidekick be maaaaaaddd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just visited Northeastern and gamed system or not, it's a very good school that can provide a ton of opportunities and experiences for students.

I also like their campus very much.

It was very apparent that they do sell themselves hard and that they really want as much money as they can get. Just take a look at their international students.

We are not sure if we are going to apply, but if my kid ends up attending NU, I do not think it would be an over-payment for an education.

Especially if you transfer in, which many students do.

OML don't you go talking sense on an NU or GU thread bc OP and his sidekick be maaaaaaddd.

NU GU and also TU

[Anonymous]

if people are going to ascribe academic merit to silly or unreliable data points like admissions rate or USNWR "rankings," it's probably worth mentioning that Northeastern isn't one of the ~65 leading US research universities in the Association of American Universities, and it was only added to the list of ~150 R1 universities of "very high research activity" less than a decade ago. So praise its 'job-friendly' curriculum and the nice campus and the urban benefits of Boston (shopping ... restaurants ... awesome!) if you wish -- obviously there are some DCUM commenters who are mostly interested in bragging rights -- but don't pretend those are the most meaningful measure of academic quality.

BTW, the WSJ ranks Northeastern as #86; Forbes puts it at #76; the Times of London ranks it 86th (in the US); and the Center for World University Rankings ranks it #106 in the US. Not because they're part of conspiracy against Northeastern -- to be in the top 80 or 90 or 110 across the entire US is still to be very highly ranked -- but because they have reason to believe other colleges provide a better education. NU's USNWR ranking has been and remains something of an outlier. And certainly not the basis for extravagant claims that Northeastern is literally just one step or rank below the "top 25" schools in the country.

[Anonymous]

Blah blah blah my kid d did not get accepted at NU, nor should yours.

Ok. Whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:if people are going to ascribe academic merit to silly or unreliable data points like admissions rate or USNWR "rankings," it's probably worth mentioning that Northeastern isn't one of the ~65 leading US research universities in the Association of American Universities, and it was only added to the list of ~150 R1 universities of "very high research activity" less than a decade ago. So praise its 'job-friendly' curriculum and the nice campus and the urban benefits of Boston (shopping ... restaurants ... awesome!) if you wish -- obviously there are some DCUM commenters who are mostly interested in bragging rights -- but don't pretend those are the most meaningful measure of academic quality.

BTW, the WSJ ranks Northeastern as #86; Forbes puts it at #76; the Times of London ranks it 86th (in the US); and the Center for World University Rankings ranks it #106 in the US. Not because they're part of conspiracy against Northeastern -- to be in the top 80 or 90 or 110 across the entire US is still to be very highly ranked -- but because they have reason to believe other colleges provide a better education. NU's USNWR ranking has been and remains something of an outlier. And certainly not the basis for extravagant claims that Northeastern is literally just one step or rank below the "top 25" schools in the country.

The society and industry that actually pay for the result of the educaiton would most objectly evaluate the academic qualtiy.
Those rankings are just one factor to consdier for students.
Based on the data, acceptance rate, yield rate, and student stats, Northeatern is obviously considered by the students as one of the next best options after T25ish schools.
That's what's happening in reality. Take the red pill and wake up.