Northeastern University

Date: Oct 21 2009
Major: Communications (This Major's Salary over time)
Before looking into coming to Northeastern, ask yourself two questions. Do I A. want to party every night, tailgate at athletic events, live in a frat or sorority house, live in an suburban area and get strait A?s easily OR B. do I want to work hard, party on weekends (in apartments), attend awesome hockey games, live in an urban setting, be challenged and walk out of college with a stacked resume?

If you chose A then Northeastern is not for you. However, if you chose B then Northeastern is most certainly for you. When choosing a school I was torn between those very two questions I just asked you. Did I want to party every week, attend football games, join a sorority and experience a college life that you see in a lot of movies? Yes, absolutely, however, looking back on my college career I am happy I went with the exact opposite decision.

Northeastern gave me opportunities that I never imagined. Not only do you get to go to college an extra year longer than your friends that go to other schools, but you leave Northeastern with awareness and experience of the real world. After growing up around the Boston area and then going to school in the city, in my junior year, I decided I wanted to branch out and seriously get out of Boston. I decided to get more involved. I signed up for Alternative spring break, where I went down South with other NU students to volunteer, then I decided to do a summer dialogue (which is a summer semester 5 weeks abroad with one or two professors) then I came back from studying abroad to go to New York City and complete a 6- month co-op (internship). When my co-op is over, I will be going abroad for the spring and coming back for a summer semester of classes only to leave again hopefully to California for another co-op in the fall.

All my friends will be graduating this year, and I luckily still get the chance to experience other places while building my resume and still be a student at Northeastern. This is a truly valuable school. If you are serious about doing well here, then people will help. Some other comments stated that the faculty did not care and this school sucked. Those people clearly do not belong at Northeastern anyways. Northeastern students work hard and do not expect everything to be spoon-fed. If you show professors you care then they will go the extra mile for you.

Pros: Awesome hockey team, beautiful campus, huge gym, co-op, diversity, clubs and organizations of every kind (One I especially like is the ski club, $40 every weekend a bus takes you up to Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire ski resorts), you get to travel and live in other places while building your resume and getting college credit.

Cons: Not so great football team, not a huge Greek Life, cold winters, cant have a car, Boston Bars close at 1:00 (not to mention if your not 21, your not getting in), Northeastern is near Mission Hill (shady area), you never have a summer off after your freshmen year, some professors are foreign and speak broken English (However, I think your going to get that anywhere you go).

This is an excellent school so do not let anyone tell you differently. It is all about preference so you should decided if you are a career gal/guy OR party gal/guy. If you want a career and guaranteed experience then Northeastern is for you!