Scathing Summary of Northeastern Admissions

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is so surprising is all the Northeastern haters. You don't like how they process applicants, don't let your kid apply. Others get in and like the program, why piss in their cheerios?

If your kids go there and like it, great. But many parents and students are misled by how Northeastern has represented their desirability/admission rate, class size, etc. as it has worked for a decade to gamify the criteria used for various rankings. It's a top 100-125 school with a likely 30+-ish% admission rate masquerading as a top 50-60-ish school with a 5% admission rate. We just want the truth to get out. Their practices are deceptive only if no one calls it out. Parents/students deserve more transparency. If they know this, and still want to go, go for it.

So this is all out of the goodness of your hearts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The idea that somehow NEU has transformed itself into an elite university should raise a lot of eyebrows. It is a fine school, but let's not get carried away.

For a more accurate view of NEU, both of these rankings are more reputable than the USNWR.

Times Higher Education 2026 World Rankings
#2 MIT
#5 Harvard
#76 Boston University
#189 Tufts
#201-250 Northeastern

2026 QS World University Rankings
#1 MIT
#5 Harvard
#88 Boston University
#334 Tufts
#384 Northeastern

Wacky rankings.

Times Higher Education
#88 Minnesota
#105 Michigan State
#166 UVA
#180 Dartmouth
#201-250 Georgetown
#251-300 Boston College
#401-500 Wake Forest
#801-1000 William and Mary

QS World Rankings
#82 Penn State
#161 Michigan State
#173 ASU
#182 Emory
#247 Dartmouth
#275 UVA
#285 Georgetown
#294 Notre Dame
#526 Boston College
#1001-1200 William and Mary

Those rankings are based much more on research an publishing output. Big research schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is so surprising is all the Northeastern haters. You don't like how they process applicants, don't let your kid apply. Others get in and like the program, why piss in their cheerios?

If your kids go there and like it, great. But many parents and students are misled by how Northeastern has represented their desirability/admission rate, class size, etc. as it has worked for a decade to gamify the criteria used for various rankings. It's a top 100-125 school with a likely 30+-ish% admission rate masquerading as a top 50-60-ish school with a 5% admission rate. We just want the truth to get out. Their practices are deceptive only if no one calls it out. Parents/students deserve more transparency. If they know this, and still want to go, go for it.

This! It’s bizarre the lengths to which the Northeastern boosters go to justify the school’s unethical practices. This thread helps reinforce the school’s sub-par reputation. (And before the trolls respond - no my DC did not apply to NEU, and yes she will be attending a T10 next fall).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The idea that somehow NEU has transformed itself into an elite university should raise a lot of eyebrows. It is a fine school, but let's not get carried away.

For a more accurate view of NEU, both of these rankings are more reputable than the USNWR.

Times Higher Education 2026 World Rankings
#2 MIT
#5 Harvard
#76 Boston University
#189 Tufts
#201-250 Northeastern

2026 QS World University Rankings
#1 MIT
#5 Harvard
#88 Boston University
#334 Tufts
#384 Northeastern

Wacky rankings.

Times Higher Education
#88 Minnesota
#105 Michigan State
#166 UVA
#180 Dartmouth
#201-250 Georgetown
#251-300 Boston College
#401-500 Wake Forest
#801-1000 William and Mary

QS World Rankings
#82 Penn State
#161 Michigan State
#173 ASU
#182 Emory
#247 Dartmouth
#275 UVA
#285 Georgetown
#294 Notre Dame
#526 Boston College
#1001-1200 William and Mary

+1000

Those allegedly accurate rankings really hating William and Mary

Also Dartmouth and Georgetown

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The idea that somehow NEU has transformed itself into an elite university should raise a lot of eyebrows. It is a fine school, but let's not get carried away.

For a more accurate view of NEU, both of these rankings are more reputable than the USNWR.

Times Higher Education 2026 World Rankings
#2 MIT
#5 Harvard
#76 Boston University
#189 Tufts
#201-250 Northeastern

2026 QS World University Rankings
#1 MIT
#5 Harvard
#88 Boston University
#334 Tufts
#384 Northeastern

Wacky rankings.

Times Higher Education
#88 Minnesota
#105 Michigan State
#166 UVA
#180 Dartmouth
#201-250 Georgetown
#251-300 Boston College
#401-500 Wake Forest
#801-1000 William and Mary

QS World Rankings
#82 Penn State
#161 Michigan State
#173 ASU
#182 Emory
#247 Dartmouth
#275 UVA
#285 Georgetown
#294 Notre Dame
#526 Boston College
#1001-1200 William and Mary

+1000

Those allegedly accurate rankings really hating William and Mary

Also Dartmouth and Georgetown

Most global rankings are primarily based on research output and citations, or reputation that is primarily based on research impact. It favors schools with huge research programs, big graduate schools and a lot of international students. A lot of STEM research is in English, so the USA and UK schools usually do really well in these surveys. Elite private schools with smaller graduate programs and less research output never do well in these surveys.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is so surprising is all the Northeastern haters. You don't like how they process applicants, don't let your kid apply. Others get in and like the program, why piss in their cheerios?

If your kids go there and like it, great. But many parents and students are misled by how Northeastern has represented their desirability/admission rate, class size, etc. as it has worked for a decade to gamify the criteria used for various rankings. It's a top 100-125 school with a likely 30+-ish% admission rate masquerading as a top 50-60-ish school with a 5% admission rate. We just want the truth to get out. Their practices are deceptive only if no one calls it out. Parents/students deserve more transparency. If they know this, and still want to go, go for it.

So this is all out of the goodness of your hearts?

This is a board for parents to help other parents, so yes I want to inform each other out of good intentions. Why are you on this board?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is so surprising is all the Northeastern haters. You don't like how they process applicants, don't let your kid apply. Others get in and like the program, why piss in their cheerios?

If your kids go there and like it, great. But many parents and students are misled by how Northeastern has represented their desirability/admission rate, class size, etc. as it has worked for a decade to gamify the criteria used for various rankings. It's a top 100-125 school with a likely 30+-ish% admission rate masquerading as a top 50-60-ish school with a 5% admission rate. We just want the truth to get out. Their practices are deceptive only if no one calls it out. Parents/students deserve more transparency. If they know this, and still want to go, go for it.

This! It’s bizarre the lengths to which the Northeastern boosters go to justify the school’s unethical practices. This thread helps reinforce the school’s sub-par reputation. (And before the trolls respond - no my DC did not apply to NEU, and yes she will be attending a T10 next fall).

+1

[Anonymous]

There’s no doubt that Northeastern cooks its admissions numbers. However, they run a great coop program. We’ve hired a lot of their kids over the years. They seem to be the first major school to feature such a program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There’s no doubt that Northeastern cooks its admissions numbers. However, they run a great coop program. We’ve hired a lot of their kids over the years. They seem to be the first major school to feature such a program.

If Northeastern "cooks" their numbers, they're not really a "major" school, then, right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The idea that somehow NEU has transformed itself into an elite university should raise a lot of eyebrows. It is a fine school, but let's not get carried away.

For a more accurate view of NEU, both of these rankings are more reputable than the USNWR.

Times Higher Education 2026 World Rankings
#2 MIT
#5 Harvard
#76 Boston University
#189 Tufts
#201-250 Northeastern

2026 QS World University Rankings
#1 MIT
#5 Harvard
#88 Boston University
#334 Tufts
#384 Northeastern

Wacky rankings.

Times Higher Education
#88 Minnesota
#105 Michigan State
#166 UVA
#180 Dartmouth
#201-250 Georgetown
#251-300 Boston College
#401-500 Wake Forest
#801-1000 William and Mary

QS World Rankings
#82 Penn State
#161 Michigan State
#173 ASU
#182 Emory
#247 Dartmouth
#275 UVA
#285 Georgetown
#294 Notre Dame
#526 Boston College
#1001-1200 William and Mary

+1000

Those allegedly accurate rankings really hating William and Mary

Also Dartmouth and Georgetown

Most global rankings are primarily based on research output and citations, or reputation that is primarily based on research impact. It favors schools with huge research programs, big graduate schools and a lot of international students. A lot of STEM research is in English, so the USA and UK schools usually do really well in these surveys. Elite private schools with smaller graduate programs and less research output never do well in these surveys.

But according to the hater, it's the most accurate ranking somehow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The idea that somehow NEU has transformed itself into an elite university should raise a lot of eyebrows. It is a fine school, but let's not get carried away.

For a more accurate view of NEU, both of these rankings are more reputable than the USNWR.

Times Higher Education 2026 World Rankings
#2 MIT
#5 Harvard
#76 Boston University
#189 Tufts
#201-250 Northeastern

2026 QS World University Rankings
#1 MIT
#5 Harvard
#88 Boston University
#334 Tufts
#384 Northeastern

Wacky rankings.

Times Higher Education
#88 Minnesota
#105 Michigan State
#166 UVA
#180 Dartmouth
#201-250 Georgetown
#251-300 Boston College
#401-500 Wake Forest
#801-1000 William and Mary

QS World Rankings
#82 Penn State
#161 Michigan State
#173 ASU
#182 Emory
#247 Dartmouth
#275 UVA
#285 Georgetown
#294 Notre Dame
#526 Boston College
#1001-1200 William and Mary

+1000

Those allegedly accurate rankings really hating William and Mary

Also Dartmouth and Georgetown

Most global rankings are primarily based on research output and citations, or reputation that is primarily based on research impact. It favors schools with huge research programs, big graduate schools and a lot of international students. A lot of STEM research is in English, so the USA and UK schools usually do really well in these surveys. Elite private schools with smaller graduate programs and less research output never do well in these surveys.

But according to the hater, it's the most accurate ranking somehow.

It is a relevant ranking. You just have to consider what it ranks and what you are looking for in a ranking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The idea that somehow NEU has transformed itself into an elite university should raise a lot of eyebrows. It is a fine school, but let's not get carried away.

For a more accurate view of NEU, both of these rankings are more reputable than the USNWR.

Times Higher Education 2026 World Rankings
#2 MIT
#5 Harvard
#76 Boston University
#189 Tufts
#201-250 Northeastern

2026 QS World University Rankings
#1 MIT
#5 Harvard
#88 Boston University
#334 Tufts
#384 Northeastern

Wacky rankings.

Times Higher Education
#88 Minnesota
#105 Michigan State
#166 UVA
#180 Dartmouth
#201-250 Georgetown
#251-300 Boston College
#401-500 Wake Forest
#801-1000 William and Mary

QS World Rankings
#82 Penn State
#161 Michigan State
#173 ASU
#182 Emory
#247 Dartmouth
#275 UVA
#285 Georgetown
#294 Notre Dame
#526 Boston College
#1001-1200 William and Mary

+1000

Those allegedly accurate rankings really hating William and Mary

Also Dartmouth and Georgetown

Most global rankings are primarily based on research output and citations, or reputation that is primarily based on research impact. It favors schools with huge research programs, big graduate schools and a lot of international students. A lot of STEM research is in English, so the USA and UK schools usually do really well in these surveys. Elite private schools with smaller graduate programs and less research output never do well in these surveys.

But according to the hater, it's the most accurate ranking somehow.

It is a relevant ranking. You just have to consider what it ranks and what you are looking for in a ranking.

It doesn't seem much relevant ranking for undergraduate education in the first place.
Not a good source at all for high school students and their parents.

[Anonymous]

This is why the UK internal rankings make sense for undergraduate education. There are 3 of them, each with slightly different focus, but none of them are focused on Graduate/Phd research.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s no doubt that Northeastern cooks its admissions numbers. However, they run a great coop program. We’ve hired a lot of their kids over the years. They seem to be the first major school to feature such a program.

If Northeastern "cooks" their numbers, they're not really a "major" school, then, right?

If Northeastern had ever cooked their numbers, they would have been booted and sued like those major schools such as Columbia, Berkeley, Emory, etc.,
but that never happened to Northeastern.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Okay, ignore the global rankings but what about Forbes, a far higher quality journalistic organization, which looks at ROI and not self reported data, ranks Northeastern at 113 with BU at 45, BC at 54 and Tufts at 58. USNWR is the People magazine of rankings, your mother in law is far more likely to see their list but it isn't a primary source for anyone wanting quality analysis . . .

Forbes is a magazine trying to take money from you. What data do they use?

For ROI, I would go with the official data from the U.S. Department of Education.
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/

Northeastern: $102k
Tufts: $97k
Boston College: $96k
Boston Uiniv: $84k

In terms of career outcomes, Northeastern is on par with many T20 T30 schools.

Career outcomes are always a good measure, but doesn’t necessarily mean on par with T20 T30.

“Roughly” 95% to 97% 2025 Northeastern University grads are employed or enrolled in graduate school within 9 months of graduation.

Definitively 98% 2025 Fordham University GSB grads are employed or enrolled in graduate school within 6 months of graduation.
94% 2025 Fordham University Liberal Arts grads are employed or enrolled in graduate school within 6 months of graduation.

Assuming some 2025 Fordham grads are included above in graduate school: 2025 Fordham Law School accepted approximately 1,524 out of 6,800 applicants to join its Juris Doctor (J.D.) program ~ 22% acceptance rate.

Fordham does not yield protect.