Can a student ask for merit aid. NEU is my first choice but my parents will not qualify for financial aid but will not be able to afford it without the merit aid. I did get merit from other schools and would hope NEU would give me some money even if only a $5K as I can work to get more money and my parents can pay most but not all of the tuition.
What other colleges offered you merit aid? If they are peer institutions, you can contact admissions. Be prepared to submit copies of the offers.
No idea if that would be successful.
Received a good merit scholarship to University of Pittsburgh. Can I use this to hopefully get money from NEU
Pitt would be a peer college. Give it a try.
How do you find out which college is considered a peer college? I would never think UPitt is one of them (have a nice merit from them, too)ā¦
There is no official way to determine peer institutions. Pitt being a public university complicates it too.
But a merit award from a small college that is desperately trying to fill its freshman class would certainly not be a peer. Nor would a college that has a, say, 70%+ acceptance rate.
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Once I receive my financial letter should I gain access to a financial aid portal? I canāt find any financial portal in my admissions portal or the student portal. Iām looking to see a COA estimate breakdown, even if itās pre-aid.
Did you receive your financial aid?
Still waiting hereā¦
I did not receive any email or update letter yet
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CA Mama - Thanks for the information. How did your sonās friend like the Dublin program? My son was accepted and he is considering the sites (Belfast, Dublin, Prague, Greece). Also from CA (Southern part). Thanks.
Read on Reddit people said they got much better aid than the pre-read. 
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D was admitted as a New York City Scholar. She recently advanced to Finalist standing in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program.
I found Northeastern University offers National Scholarships to National Merit Finalist, as described in:
āStudents who are admitted to Northeastern and are recognized as National Merit Finalists* or National Recognition Program Scholars** will receive a competitive merit-based award and may also be eligible for financial aid.ā
Does anybody know more details of the ācompetitive merit-based awardā such as the amount and terms?
Thanks!
My S25 listed Northeastern as his first choice school back in February and received an updated financial aid award and scholarship letter in his Northeastern portal on 3/20. He was awarded $10k per year. He had not been awarded any merit from Northeastern previously. I think the scholarship requires the student to maintain a 3.0 gpa.
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Finally received our financial aidā¦ with 0 (zero) awarded. Our SAI is negative.
So weird, but whatever, at least we can finally move onto other optionsā¦
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You got no aid at all? Thatās crazy. Have you considered appealing? I thought NU Promise clearly says āWe are dedicated to meeting the full demonstrated need for each admitted student eligible for federal financial aidā although of course they may try to twist it around a bit but still thatās crazy to get absolutely nothing with negative SAI. You sure, you didnāt miss any documentation on the checklist? I still await my aid, I reached out to SFS and they just said to wait additional 5 business days from Wednesday and I will get it so Iām expecting around this Wednesday I guessā¦
Iām assuming when they asked you for additional documentation they asked for the Resource and Expense Clarification. Did you ensure you submitted both one for parents and one for the student itself even if the student has no income, 0 for everything? I double-checked with the office and they requested one be filled out for both the student and parents.
Everything marked as received from the CSS Profile? W-2s (ensure from both parents if both worked), Tax Return, Schedule 1, Tax Statement, Verification Statement?
Everything is checked as received, they asked for one form, sent and receivedā¦didnāt ask for any other documentation. All they gave us is a maximum federal pell grant - 7K (which I assume comes from the state and not NEU)ā¦ All other colleges with aid etc come to about 30K COAā¦ So I am not really sure what happened there. I tried calling but they told me itās final and no reason to ask to reevaluateā¦
If anyone was at the Admitted Student Welcome yesterday in Los Angeles at Marriott Marina Del Rey, it was a great time and I look forward to likely attending Northeastern (given I get a good financial aid package). I have scheduled a visit to Oakland in late April so looking forward to that as well. 
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Curious, did you end up getting your financial aid package yet?
I know this thread has kinda gone a bit inactive but I was seeking some help if anyone has visited Oakland or planned a visit to Oakland.
We plan to visit in about 2-3 weeks. We are looking for potential safe and comfy 3-star or above hotels in the area, doesnāt have to be super luxurious. Has anyone visited there and have any suggestions? Should we stay in SF (hotels can be very expensive there), Berkeley, or Fremont? Those are the hotel options, weāve seen, Fremont looks kind of like a stretch. Our plan is to drive up there since we are from SoCal so itās like a 4-7 hour drive on Sunday morning and arrive afternoon, stay the night in the hotel, and then check-out in the morning on Monday, visit NEU Oakland, and then drive home well-rested. I think thatās a solid plan and Iāll miss one day of school which is fine with me.
Also are there any offers like I know Iāve seen Marriott offer discounted rates for students visiting the Boston campus to stay in their hotel near the campus. Does any similar offer apply to Oakland prospectives visiting?
There is a group on FB for Oakland parents, you should try asking there 