Northeastern University
Boston, Massachusetts | Admissions Phone: 617-373-2200
E-mail: admissions@northeastern.edu | Website: www.northeastern.edu
ADMISSION
Admission Rate: 19%
Admission Rate - Men: 19%
Admission Rate - Women: 20%
EA Admission Rate: N/A
ED Admission Rate: 41%
Admission Rate (5-Year Trend): -13%
ED Admission Rate (5-Year Trend): N/A
% of Admits Attending (Yield): 23%
Transfer Admission Rate: 31%
# Offered Wait List: N/A
# Accepted Wait List: N/A
# Admitted Wait List: N/A
SAT Reading/Writing (Middle 50%): 670-750
SAT Math (Middle 50%): 690-790
ACT Composite (Middle 50%): 32-34
Testing Policy: ACT/SAT Required
SAT Superscore: Yes
ACT Superscore: Yes
% Graduated in Top 10% of HS Class: 77%
% Graduated in Top 25% of HS Class: 95%
% Graduated in Top 50% of HS Class: 99%
ENROLLMENT
Total Undergraduate Enrollment: 18,448
% Part-Time: 0%
% Male: 49%
% Female: 51%
% Out-of-State: 73%
% Fraternity: 10%
% Sorority: 17%
% On-Campus (Freshman): 99%
% On-Campus (All Undergraduate): 49%
% African-American: 4%
% Asian: 14%
% Hispanic: 8%
% White: 46%
% Other: 4%
% Race or Ethnicity Unknown: 6%
% International: 18%
% Low-Income: 15%
ACADEMICS
Student-to-Faculty Ratio: 14:1
% of Classes Under 20: 67%
% of Classes Under 40: 85%
% Full-Time Faculty: 74%
% Full-Time Faculty w/ Terminal Degree: 95%
Top Programs
Communication Studies
Computer Science
Criminal Justice
Engineering
Health Science
International Affairs
International Business
Nursing
Retention Rate: 97%
4-Year Graduation Rate: N/A
6-Year Graduation Rate: 88%
Curricular Flexibility: Less Flexible
Academic Rating: 
FINANCIAL
Institutional Type: Private
In-State Tuition: $52,420
Out-of-State Tuition: $52,420
Room & Board: $16,930
Required Fees: $1,086
Books & Supplies: $1,000
Avg. Need-Based Aid: $35,299
Avg. % of Need Met: 100%
Avg. Merit-Based Aid: $19,488
% Receiving Merit-Based Aid: 51%
Avg. Cumulative Debt: N/A
% of Students Borrowing: N/A
CAREER
Who Recruits
1. IBM
2. Siemens
3. Staples
4. Coleman
5. Northwestern Mutual
Notable Internships
1. Wayfair
2. Vogue
3. Tesla
Top Industries
1. Business
2. Engineering
3. Operations
4. Education
5. information Technology
Top Employers
1. State Street
2. Fidelity Investments
3. Amazon
4. IBM
5. Wayfair
Where Alumni Work
1. Boston
2. New York City
3. San Francisco
4. Washington, DC
5. Los Angeles
Median Earnings
College Scorecard (Early Career): $67,400
EOP (Early Career): $61,800
PayScale (Mid-Career): $109,700
RANKINGS
Forbes: 182
Money: 135
U.S. News: 40, 74, National Universities
Wall Street Journal/THE: 93 (T)
Washington Monthly: 141, National Universities
Inside the Classroom
If Northeastern University was a middle-aged person headed to a twentieth high school reunion, it would easily earn the distinction as the least recognized individual in the room. Few institutions have undergone such a substantial metamorphosis in such a short time. Beginning in the 1990s NU decided to reverse-engineer the US News rankings and make a grab for increased prestige. At the time, the school was ranked the 162nd best university in the nation. As of 2019 it is close to cracking the top forty. Today, the average undergraduate student possesses a 4.2 GPA and a 1459 on the SAT, literally 400+ higher than two decades ago. You read that correctly—400 points!
On the menu for this suddenly top-flight breed of undergrads are all the trappings of a major research university, including ninety-two majors and 142 combined majors available at Northeastern’s seven undergraduate schools. All students are required to walk the NUpath, the school’s core curriculum that is “built around essential, broad-based knowledge and skills—such as understanding societies and analyzing data—integrated with specific content areas and disciplines.” There are eleven components to the NUpath that involve forays into the natural and designed world, creative expression and innovation, culture, formal and quantitative reasoning, societies and institutions, analyzing data, differences and diversity, ethical reasoning, writing across audiences, integrating knowledge and skills through experience, and a capstone course as you near completion of your chosen major(s).
More than two-thirds of Husky classrooms contain nineteen or fewer students, and 11 percent have single-digit enrollments. Large lecture hall courses crammed with undergrads are rare at this school—only 6 percent of sections sport a student enrollment of fifty or more. A 14:1 student-to-faculty ratio makes these cozy class sizes possible, an impressive feat considering the school has almost 8,700 graduate students to serve as well. Since 2006 Northeastern has added an incredible 650 tenured and tenure-track faculty members. Undergraduate research opportunities exist in all departments, and experiential learning of some type is had by virtually all graduates, thanks to the school’s illustrious and robust co-op program. NU students have not only become more accomplished but also more worldly. Last academic year, 3,820 students had a global experience in one of eighty-eight countries, and 538 students participated in a co-op program overseas.
The D’Amore-McKim School of Business is a top-ranked school and offers one of the best international business programs anywhere, and the both the College of Engineering and College of Computer Science are highly respected as well. Criminal justice, architecture, and nursing are three other majors that rate near the top nationally. Business/marketing (25 percent) and engineering (17 percent) account for the largest percentages of degrees conferred. The social sciences (12 percent), health-related professions (10 percent), and biology (8 percent) round out the list of most popular majors. In 2019, Northeastern grads fared better than ever in procuring nationally competitive scholarships. Nine took home Fulbright Scholarships, five were awarded Gilman Scholarships, and two won Truman Scholarships.
Outside the Classroom
Northeastern is split down the middle in terms of those who live in on-campus housing and those who do not. All freshmen and sophomores are required to live in the dorms, and most have at least one or two roommates. Campus offers six large quad areas and twenty eateries. Greek life is fairly strong with 10 percent of men and 17 percent of women joining frats and sororities. The 73-acre urban campus is situated in the true heart of downtown Boston and within one mile of Fenway Park, Newbury Street, and the Museum of Fine Arts. With such a premier location, the beloved city of Boston is truly an extension of your campus, but there are also plenty of university-sponsored activities to keep you busy. Over 400 student clubs and organizations and the Northeastern University Hus-skiers and Outing Club (NUHOC), student government, and forty club sports teams are among the most popular. In total, 3,000 students participate in club and intramural sports. Spectator sports are not a focal point of NU life—the football program was dissolved in 2009— but of the sixteen existing NCAA Division I squads, the Huskies hockey team reigns supreme. The spirit of volunteerism is huge at NU as students have contributed a collective 1.4 million hours since 2006.
Career Services
Thirty-six counselors, employer relations specialists, and experiential learning coordinators comprise the NU Employer Engagement and Career Design Office (EECD), which doesn’t count admin assistants or IT professionals. Working out to a student-to-advisor ratio of 512:1, NU offers a high level of support for an institution with more than 18,000 undergraduates. Northeastern University has long held a reputation as one of the premier career services providers in the nation, and it’s not hard to see why.
Career counselors received incredibly high reviews from students as 96 percent report progress on their career goals after only one session; 100 percent felt it was worth their time to return for a follow-up. The EECD has forged relationships with over 3,000 employers and, through its employer-in-residence program, representatives from those organizations spend up to one day per week for an entire year interacting with students, making personal connections, and offering career tips. The fall 2018 Career Fair was attended by 260 employers and the spring Engineering and Technology Career Fair usually draws 4,000+ students and 140 companies. Perhaps the most impactful role of this office is to facilitate co-op placements. Ninety-six percent of NU graduates spend at least one semester in a co-op placement, and 50 percent of students receive a job offer from their co-op partner; 2,900+ employers participate each year. By almost any metric, the Employer Engagement and Career Design services stand out from the pack, easily earning its staff near universal praise.
Professional Outcomes
Nine months after leaving Northeastern 92 percent of students have landed at their next employment or graduate school destination. Huskies entering the job market are quickly rounded up by the likes of State Street, Fidelity Investments, IBM, and Amazon, all of whom employ 500+ Northeastern alums. Between 200 and 500 employees at Wayfair, Google, Amazon, Oracle, IBM, and Apple have an NU lineage. Whether or not they originally hailed from New England, the vast majority of graduates remain in the Greater Boston area. Next in popularity are New York City, San Francisco, DC, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Seattle. Starting salaries are above average, in part due to the stellar co-op program, and compensation is in the same range as other highly selective schools including Fordham and Boston University.
Strange for a school with such excellent career services, Northeastern does not publicize its law school or med school acceptance rates or release a list of the most frequently attended graduate schools by NU alumni. The highly ranked Northeastern University School of Law does take a large number of its own undergraduates. More than one alum is currently enrolled at such law schools as Suffolk, Harvard, Fordham, and Boston College. While Northeastern does not have its own medical college, many graduates go on to attend top institutions. Multiple recent grads are currently attending such medical schools as UMass, Harvard, UConn, and Tufts. In short, while NU is strangely mysterious about its graduate/professional school outcomes data, it has no reason to be; Huskies routinely continue their educations at some of the best universities in the United States.
Admission
Only 18 percent of the 62,000 applicants for a place in the 2019-20 freshman class received a letter of acceptance. The middle-50 percent stats for admitted (not committed) students included a 4.1-4.5 GPA, a 1450-1540 SAT range, and 33-35 on the ACT. Over three-quarters placed in the top 10 percent of their high school graduating class. A decade ago, the school received only 34,000 applications, and a far less menacing 41 percent were let through the door. Freshmen in 2009-10 possessed middle 50 percent SAT scores of 1200-1370. Any way you measure it, the level of selectivity is far greater than even in the most recent past.
An applicant’s GPA, rigor of courses, standardized test scores, essay, and recommendation letters are all categorized as “very important” admissions factors by this committee. Admissions officers at Northeastern place soft factors such as extracurricular activities, talent/ability, character, personal qualities, volunteer work, and work experience on the next rung of “important” categories. Class rank, first-generation status, ethnic status, geographical residence, and the level of demonstrated interest comprise the “considered” factors in the admissions process. As to why geographical residence is a considered factor, the university received only 49 percent of its applications from outside New England in 2006; in 2019, it received 65 percent from outside the region. That is all part of the university’s aforementioned quest to enhance its national reputation. Northeastern’s desirability and prestige have risen at a lightning pace, making it exactly the type of school that even a well-intentioned school counselor or parent can easily misjudge in terms of the current odds of gaining admission. This is a school that generally only accepts students with standardized test scores in the top 3 percent and who have virtually flawless transcripts. Applying via binding early decision is definitely a serious consideration. Of the 1,107 who did so last year, 41 percent were successful.
Worth Your Money?
Northeastern has a list price cost of attendance in excess of $72,000 per year, and the need-based aid situation is less than ideal. Only two-thirds of those applying for financial aid received an award. Compare that to nearby Boston College and Boston University, each of which awarded need-based grants to 88 percent and 82 percent, respectively, of those who applied. The better news is that over half of Northeastern students receive a merit aid award averaging $19,500, at least bringing the total four-year costs closer to $200,000. In short, this school is worth your money if you are aiming to enter a high-paying field and/or have parents who can afford the hefty tuition payments. Then the connections the school provides are worth a substantial amount. However, middle-class students set on entering public service would likely not see their investment returned and could accumulate a good deal of debt along the way.