Each year, graduating Huskies are asked to donate a minimum amount of money to Northeastern as their “senior gift.” This year, the amount they’re being asked to donate is $20.11. While it’s made to look cute, what with the $20.11 symbolizing the “Class of 2011,” it seems like a slap in the face to the many students who are having enough trouble getting by as it is.
According to the “Senior Gift” section of the Class of 2011 website, “This is an opportunity for graduates to make a difference and give back to the university, specifically to a cause or program that significantly impacted their journey through Northeastern.” There is a lot about this statement that is unfair.
Firstly, students pay absurd amounts of money to go to Northeastern. We are paying the school for a service, which they are then obligated to provide. And with tuition, room and board, and fees topping $49,000 per year, there is no reason for our experience to fall below anything but extraordinary. In addition, when taking advantage of great opportunities like study abroad, we pay for that too. Oh, do we pay for it.
It seems outrageous that after paying this much money each year (plus additional amounts for books, supplies, etc.,) Northeastern would pressure students for even more simply because they’ve supposedly had an “amazing experience.”
Which brings up the second point. While many students look back and smile at their time here, not every student is happy with the experience they’ve had at Northeastern. Between things like the NU Shuffle and tuition hikes, there are bound to be students dissatisfied with the system, and why would they give even more money to an organization that they weren’t happy with in the first place?
If the administration really wants recognition from alumni (or soon-to-be alumni in this case) then they should do their best to work for the students during their time here.
Finally, by saying “This is an opportunity for graduates to make a difference …” it implies that students can only help by making a monetary contribution. In reality, many students have dedicated huge amounts of time to various clubs and organizations on campus. Students do amazing things with these groups, and they work their butts off to do them. To ask for money to help “make a difference” is trivializing all that they’ve accomplished monetarily and otherwise.
Twenty dollars and some change is not a fortune. And some students have cash to burn, and that’s great. Northeastern is a solid establishment that provides us with many extraordinary opportunities, but that’s what we pay them for already.
Some students have the money. Many students don’t have the money. They will soon have to pay back student loans that they took out to pay for Northeastern in the first place. They are living on credit because they have no cash flow. And they are entering a very scary job market. For the school to expect anything from these people after hundreds of thousands of dollars in tuition is unbelievable.
Talk to us in a few years. Maybe by then, if we’ve landed a six figure paying job because we have Northeastern on our resume, we’ll be a little more understanding about “giving back” to a place that was simply doing its job in the first place.
