UMass Amherst (35k [biology]) vs Rutgers NB (50k [ITI]) vs Northeastern (80k [CS/design]) [want to do UX/UI design, product design, software engineering]

hey there! currently facing a dilemma — im split between umass amherst (in-state, honors, ~$35k/year), northeastern (in-state, ~$80k/year but i did appeal for more finaid due to special circumstances), and rutgers nb (oos, honors program, ~$50k/year). for reference, im currently looking to do ux/ui design, product design, front-end software engineering, etc. in the future.

i’m currently trying to weigh rutgers’ value as an oos student against umass’s cs major restrictions + lack of focus on ux/ui/product design, and the coa for northeastern. while coa is the main thing making me hesitate in choosing northeastern, the thing is i was admitted to umass for bio, rutgers for iti, and neu for cs/design. i’ve heard it is impossible to switch into cs at umass, and i was thinking of doing the bdic/create-your-own-major program (to create some sort of hci/design major), but i was told people in this program often struggle to sign up for cs classes as they are second-priority. i also am unable to switch into the bdic program until sophomore year, while i am directly entering into cs/design freshman year at neu and don’t declare my major until sophomore year at rutgers. umass also doesn’t rly have similar majors for ux/ui that i can switch into like graphic design or information technology (which is only a minor). i’m somewhat indecisive, so i’d like to have a wide variety of majors which ik neu has with its combined and niche majors + rutgers with its wide range of unique majors, while umass only has the more traditional list of majors. i did look into the informatics major at umass, but i was directlv told it was not at all focused towards ux/ui design and instead more data science stuff.

now rutgers. for reference, i plan to major in iti and possibly minor in cognitive science. im not really interested in back-end coding which i heard rutger’s cs major is mainly comprised of, while iti allows you to be more creative through its emphasis on the user and front-end coding which is exactly what i’m looking for.

rutgers happens to be very similar to neu (top choice) in terms of the pros of the pros/cons list i made. like neu, rutgers also has a wide range of unique majors (that you can easily switch between), high-ranking T40 university, located in the city, racially diverse and is an research-oriented school. i believe the large student body would give me lots of resources to access ux/ui design clubs like rutgers blueprint and rutgers creative x with other iti majors, and the campus’s close proximity to nyc would give me easier access to internships that may be “harder” to get at the more rural amherst. as for rutgers cons on my list: i heard the quality of professors rly varies (umass is a bit more consistent), bus system (but honestly i don’t really mind), housing is meh, food is mid (umass food is better), and the RU Screw.

the thing is, i heard rutgers is not really worth it as an oos student, but considering that umass doesn’t rly have the resources i can easily access + take advantage of and neu is too expensive, would rutgers nb be worth it as an oos student? should i take the leap at umass amherst and try the bdic major for ux/ui — something umass doesn’t necessarily have the resources for (unlike neu and rutgers)? or should i just pray i get more money and attend northeastern (because i do feel like i would really take advantage of their programs and make the best of it)?

any advice would be greatly appreciated!

What are your parents saying about college costs?

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northeastern is very expensive, but if none of my other choices are a good fit for me, they will pay. also the thing i also appealed for more aid due to special circumstances, but i have no clue how much more they will give me. they are willing to pay for both rutgers and umass.

UMass does appear to be highly competitive to change into CS after enrolling: Major Change to CS - Fall 2023 Revision | Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences | UMass Amherst . You should expect getting into CS courses as a non-CS major to be difficult – they limit the number of students in the CS major because the CS courses are enrolled to full capacity.

Rutgers ITI is a less technical major than CS; it is more focused on managing computers and software, rather than designing and developing them. But changing to CS does not appear to be difficult: Admission to the Major

Northeastern is obviously the most expensive.

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This is a tough one. Northeastern is breathtakingly expensive, but the CS+Design major is pretty perfect for what you want to do, and even more perfect because of the experience you could gain in the student-led design studio https://scout.camd.northeastern.edu/ as well as in your co-ops (though you can co-op or do internships at other schools too).

A bio major at UMass sounds like a really poor fit.
The Informatics major might be a better fit than CS, if you could get into it, which doesn’t sound impossible from the web page. The data science specialization includes HCI coursework. Joining the Informatics Major | Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences | UMass Amherst
The other route would be to major in psych, and try to supplement the STEM side. But that’s much more of an uphill road into UX/UI than you’d have at Northeastern, or in the Informatics major.

The Rutgers ITI major doesn’t sound like an amazing fit either. CogSci may be your best bet if you go here - several of the tracks look like they could work for your interests. Lots of CogSci majors go into UX/UI, though CS certainly works too if you don’t mind all of the additional technical training in areas you aren’t as interested in. (The nice thing about the NEU CS+X majors is the relatively modest core requirements on the CS side, so that you have time for the cross-disciplinary focus.)

I don’t think there’s any argument but that Northeastern is the most desirable program, but whether it’s more-than-double-the-cost desirable… that depends entirely on your family finances and how important the specific academic fit is to you. If you spent all that money, changed your mind, and switched to a biology major, it would be pretty painful. So, both soul-searching and wallet-searching are in order. But, while I often don’t think that full-pay at NEU is worth it, for your particular major and goals, it might be.

You might want to check out the masters programs at Northeastern (i.e. the MS and MFA in Experience Design) and see whether taking the more affordable undergrad path with an eye toward such a grad program might not make more sense than paying 4 years of NEU undergrad tuition.

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