Lehigh vs Northeastern

PepperMilo
Tue, 30 Apr 2024 13:39:51 +0000

I graduated from Lehigh in the 90s (transferred in from NYU), and my niece is at Northeastern. These are just my observations, take them with a grain of salt.

Lehigh was, and is, a big fraternity school. Not big like an SEC school, mind you. There is still hazing (with alcohol) at some fraternities according to current parents I’m friends with. However, there were always fraternities where that was not a thing. So you can find a relaxed fraternity if that is what you are looking for. It is harder as a guy to not be in a house. I have several friends that weren’t and they enjoyed their time at Lehigh. There is a lot of school spirit at LU, and it’s where I made my college friends.

Northeastern, according to my niece, is a slog. She likes it - she likes being in Boston, has a good friend group and a serious boyfriend. She also started during covid when classes were online. It reminds me a lot of how NYU was (for me) - going to classes was kind of like going to a job. NYU did not have a college feel since there wasn’t a campus. But also, my experience was that when you are in school in an active city, so many kids hang out elsewhere in the city b/c there’s so much to do. At Lehigh, there’s really not much to do of interest nearby, so everyone stays on campus - which makes it fun.

In the end, my conclusion is that you have your whole life to live in a city, but only a few years to experience the college campus life. After graduating from LU, I moved back to NYC (for several decades), and it was more fun then, b/c I had work and money, and time without studying to enjoy city life.

Either school is a good call, it’s up to you what feels right. In reading the above, perhaps you can see yourself in one camp or the other. Let us know what you decide. Best of luck!!!