<p>while I am not a super fan of brandeis because they triple freshman and a few other things, they have a very high student retention rate (a very important indicator about a school)
the op seems to want to be in the greater boston area , brandeis packs more punch then BU or NE. that said if the op is willing to go outside of boston a school on tier with BU and NE would be Elon.(it is one of those up and coming schools that really does seem to care about it’s students)
[About</a> Elon University](<a href=“Elon University - America’s Top-Ranked Teaching University”>Elon University - America’s Top-Ranked Teaching University)
I also think everybody should look had hidden gems like Hendrix College and the not so hidden gems Muhlenberg College and Rice University (this of course is IMO)</p>