The Pros and Cons of Northeastern

What is Northeastern’s reputation?

“#1 for co-ops” “a real campus right in the heart of Boston” “great for business and STEM” “lots of students graduate with a job offer in place” “Beantown is expensive” “over-crowded” “housing is a problem” “Boston is a great college city for fun, culture, and careers” “not much school spirit” “very pre-professional” “hard to get the classes you want” “all the best co-ops fill up fast” “additional campuses in London and Oakland” “13 satellite campuses for research, co-ops, and internships” “more concerned with global expansion than student life” “great job prospects but so-so student experience”

Northeastern University (NEU) is a large private university with 16,000 undergraduates located right in the heart of Boston that’s historically been noted for the strength of its STEM programs, including engineering, computer science, and health sciences. Applicants apply directly to 1 of 7 undergraduate colleges, including: D’Amore-Kim Business (ranked #65 in the nation); Khoury CS (#40); Engineering (#35); Bouvé Health Sciences; Science; Social Science and Humanities; and Design. You can also apply to the Explore Program which gives you more time before you make a decision. And Northeastern is one of those universities where it’s really easy to transfer from one undergraduate college to another if you decide you want to study something else.

Growing pains.

Over the last decade, Northeastern has undergone a radical transformation from a regional commuter school to a global research university with 13 satellite campuses across North America, and two fully-fledged campuses in London and Oakland, CA. (The Oakland campus has fewer than 1,000 students.)

Fueled by a bold expansion plan and its signature co-op (cooperative education) program which is ranked #1 in the nation, Northeastern has re-positioned itself as a leader in experiential learning and industry engagement. This transformation provides students with key benefits: access to real-world job experience, opportunities to study and intern in multiple cities, and connections to cutting-edge research and professional networks. But this rapid growth also spawned its share of critics. Some say Northeastern prioritizes economic growth over academic quality, leading to over-crowding on campus, sub-par facilities, and an overall lackluster student experience.

If you’re seeking a more traditional college experience with close faculty mentorship and a tight-knit student community, Northeastern may fall short. But if you want the chance to combine academic coursework with practical, career-oriented learning and real-life job experience, then Northeastern provides a compelling advantage in today’s highly competitive marketplace.

The Pros of Northeastern…

#1: The Co-Ops — Starting in the spring of sophomore year, students can alternate between taking a semester of classwork, and then spending four to six months at a paid, full-time job, either working for a company or helping with cutting-edge research. You can do this right in Boston, or at one of Northeastern’s many satellite campuses, or really anywhere. Northeastern has a global network of almost 4,000 employers to choose from, including industry leaders in every field, or you can find one on your own.

Not only do you gain real-life experience that looks great on your resumé, but you make valuable industry connections that can lead to a job offer right after graduation. (It’s estimated that 95% of Northeastern students participate in the co-op program, and that about half of them receive a job offer after graduation.) Most students participate in 2 co-op programs and graduate in four years, but some students opt to complete 3 co-ops and graduate in five years.

#2: Boston — Boston is known as one of the best college cities. Not only is it generally safe, walkable, and easy to navigate with good public transportation, but there are abundant opportunities for entertainment, museums, professional sports, restaurants and bars, plus world-class internships and jobs. Plus you can mix and mingle with students from Harvard, MIT, BU and BC, and attend lots of their parties and events.

#3: N.U.in Program — This unique program offers first-year students the opportunity to spend their first semester studying abroad at a partner university before transitioning to Boston in the spring to complete the rest of their four-year degree. Recent cities include: Prague, Berlin, Thessaloniki, Dublin, Rome, Belfast, Lisbon, Glasgow, and Madrid.

#4: Global Scholars — First-year applicants who elect to join the Global Scholars Program spend their entire first year abroad (half in London, half in Oakland, CA) with a small cohort of 500 students, before transitioning to the main campus in Boston for their last three years at Northeastern. By living and studying in two distinct cities, students gain global experience while forming close connections with classmates. You can also elect to spend your entire first year in London or in Oakland, or starting in Fall 2025, in New York City.

#5: Martinson Honors Program — Exceptional applicants to Northeastern may be invited to join the John Martinson Honors Program (there’s no separate application or additional essays). Perks include special first-year housing, exclusive discussion-based seminars, a “global bank account” of $6,000 for international study, up to $30,000 in annual scholarship money, plus generous funding for research and creative endeavors. (Sorry, no priority registration.)

The Cons of Northeastern…

#1: Over-Crowding — The biggest complaint about Northeastern is that in the school’s relentless quest to become a global player, they’ve sacrificed the quality of their home community. Students complain that there’s inadequate housing, there are long lines for the dining hall, you can’t find a place to study in the library, and you can’t get into the classes you need to graduate on time. It’s simply too many students in too small a place, which can make Northeastern feel more like a bottom-line business than an institution of higher learning.

#2: Growing Cost: Like many leading private universities, Northeastern costs more than $90,000/year, though the average student pays closer to $30,000 after financial aid and merit scholarships. Nevertheless, Boston is extremely expensive, both for housing and food. While international students don’t qualify for need-based financial aid, they do quality for merit scholarships, such as the Stamps Scholars Program, which can cover four years of full tuition, including room and board.

#3: Life Quality — While many students choose Northeastern for the excellent co-op program and the prime Boston location, the actual living experience varies depending on whom you ask. Many students feel there’s no school spirit school or vibrant social scene (for example, the school doesn’t even have a football team), and some say students are too fixated on improving their job prospects after graduation. In addition, with students always coming and going, leaving campus for semesters at a time to pursue internships or study abroad, it can feel more like a busy hotel than a traditional, tight-knit student community.

If you like Northeastern, you might also like…

If you’re looking for other universities that have strong co-op or internship programs, where students are encouraged to alternate semesters of academic coursework with periods of supervised, real-world experience, there are a number of good options. While US News & World Report ranks Northeastern #1 in the nation for co-ops/internships for 2025, here are some other schools that ranked highly: Drexel (#2), Georgia Tech (#3), U Cincinnati (#5), Rochester Institute of Technology (#6), MIT (#7), Purdue (#7), Carnegie Mellon (#9), Elon (#9), Clemson (#11), Duke (#11), Cornell (#13), ASU (#14), Harvard (#14), Worcester Poly (#14), American U (#14). Note that many of these schools have strong technology departments that place students in co-ops for engineering, computer science, etc.

How to get into Northeastern…

#1: Apply ED — Northeastern offers a plethora of application options: Early Decision, Early Decision II, Early Action, and Regular Decision. But the key thing to note about Northeastern is that they overwhelmingly favor ED applicants: 39% of ED applicants get accepted, versus only 5% for Early Action and Regular Decision. The ED II acceptance rate is unknown, but it’s probably about 25%. And roughly half the freshman class at Northeastern is made up of ED applicants, so if apply Regular Decision, already half the seats will already be gone.

BONUS: Students who are accepted ED are invited to take advantage of the NU Accelerate Scholarship which lets them take two asynchronous online classes during the spring or summer terms for course credit at no cost, helping them get some general education requirements out of the way before they arrive on campus. This option is only available to ED and ED II applicants.

#2: Spend your first year in Oakland, CA — If you want to increase your odds of getting into Northeastern, check the box on your application that says that if you don’t get your first choice campus (say, Boston), you’d be willing to spend your first year in Oakland instead. The campus there is quite pretty, the student body is really small (fewer than 1,000 students!), and you’re only 2 hours from Silicon Valley for tech jobs. You can either stay all four years in Oakland, or easily transfer to Boston after one year.

#3: Transfer - While the Regular Decision acceptance rate for first-year students is only 5%, the transfer acceptance rate is closer to 25%. You can transfer in as a new sophomore or junior, depending on how many credits you’ve earned at your previous school.