Sky Cambron

Since the semesters start on Sept. 3, hundreds of students have again roamed the halls of Marymount Manhattan College’s Upper East Side campus – this time however, something is different. Over 300 Northeastern University freshmen joined students on campus this fall, marking the first step towards immersion for the upcoming merger. 

The Marymount Manhattan College and Northeastern University merger, announced in May of 2024, has been a developing story with information being released sporadically through the last year and a half on the MMC FAQ’s page, round tables, and The Monitor coverage. Yet one thing remains strong: students are confused. In an anecdotal survey, Marymount Manhattan students stated continued confusion on the merger specifically surrounding major requirements, clubs, credit transferring, and the long term status of the campus.

This is not the first time Northeastern University has acquired an educational institution. MMC will be the university’s 14th “satellite campus.” In 2022, Northeastern University “merged” with the small all women’s four year institution Mills College in Oakland, CA. Mills’ environment echoed that of Marymount Manhattan’s: focused on arts, culture, and a population of predominantly women – MMC has a population of roughly 80% women and Mills was a historic all women’s college. Unlike other satellite campuses, NU has a unique tactic: first year only experiences. Upon merging with Mills, Northeastern shifted the campus to strategically cater to first-year students. This is what will happen to Marymount Manhattan upon merger. 

According to Stephen Eic​​hinger, Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications, beginning with the incoming class of 2030, Marymount Manhattan – then to be Northeastern University NYC – will be a first year only campus for all but performing art majors. 

“New York City Scholars will attend the New York City campus for their first year before continuing their Northeastern studies in Boston,” Eichinger explained. “Performing arts students will continue their education at the New York City campus.” This will mark a stark shift following MMC’s decades as a four-year performing and liberal arts college. 

When Mills first announced its merger, students were told varying things. In a lawsuit against Northeastern by a group of over 400 Mills students, students claimed that the university had misled students into believing that they would be able to easily continue their education post-merger and failed to follow through, instead eliminating various programs. The students argued that this deception had delayed their graduations and ultimately cost them money. 

A year after the merger took place, Northeastern settled with students for a total of $1.25 million. In attempts to avoid repeating the past, Northeastern and Marymount Manhattan prepared by preemptively phasing out certain majors. 

However, students are still struggling with other aspects of the Mills merger that, although not lawsuit worthy, are troubling their daily lives. In an Op-Ed for the Huntington News , Northeastern student Rich Zou wrote that at Northeastern Oakland – the new name for Mills post merger –  “The student life infrastructure was inadequate and disorganized.” Zou continued stating that even after clubs formed, “there’s no infrastructure to foster growth, no continuous support and no strategic plan to help clubs thrive after they’ve been rubber-stamped into existence” much of which is attributed to the fact Mills undergraduate program is for first year students only, creating less room for long term club sustainability. 

Regarding the way the merger will affect already existing clubs, Mr. Eichinger stated that “student Life leaders from MMC and Northeastern are working together to determine how student groups will function following the merger.” 

As students attempt to prepare for post-merger life at a school expected to phase out four year liberal arts programs by 2029, they are actively adjusting to life in which students from two institutions are actively cohabitating. 

Aliyah Madrigal, a student leader in the Intercultural Center, feels that NU is already greatly shifting campus culture. After LaNae Plaxico stepped down from her role as Intercultural Center Assistant Director, student leaders in the IC have begun seeing changes beginning with the replacement of the door. Madrigal stated that she is “afraid the merger will put a suit in charge who will refuse to adhere from any input from student workers and won’t recognize the unique culture MMC has.” 

Additionally, Madrigal noted that there is increased division amongst MMC students and NU Scholars, referencing a Reddit post in which an aspiring NU-In Scholar spoke negatively about MMC students and reduced the institution to being ‘run down.’ 

“We are very much afraid of that kind of attitude,” Madrigal said.

Additionally, the merger has other aspects that are expected to affect MMC students in transition. In regards to academics, it is evident things will change as the school transitions into a first-year only campus. However, Mr. Eic​​hinger assured that various courses will be available, “MMC students who transition to Northeastern – New York City in their mapped Northeastern equivalent degree programs will be able to take every course required for their program at the Northeastern – New York City campus.” He added that “If these equivalent degree programs require language and math courses, then it can be expected that there will be a suitable number of those courses to accommodate the number of students who need to take them for their degree.” This is especially relevant to BA students, who under Northeastern must graduate with 12 credits or 3 classes of a foreign language. Additionally, he noted that “Higher-level courses will still be offered at the New York City campus.” How long those classes will be offered is not yet clear. 

Some students expressed worries about the Honors Program. Mr. Eichinger emphasized that honors students will transition into a similar program at Northeastern – New York City. 

The completion date of the merger is still not yet known, with a November 3rd update from Marymount Manhattan President Peter Naccarato stating that: “We will not have the required approval from the U.S. Department of Education in time to complete the merger by this date [Dec. 31, 2025.]” The email did not add a new estimated merger completion date. 

Later that day, a follow up email sent to MMC students by Academic Advising emphasized that until the merger is complete, “We [the MMC institution] will continue to operate as Marymount Manhattan College, and you [MMC students] will continue to pursue your academic degrees as students of Marymount Manhattan College.” The email added “As you go through academic advisement this month and register for Spring 2026 classes, you should continue to make progress toward completing the existing MMC curricular requirements for your program(s) of study.” 

The Academic Advising email added that if the merger is completed “later” in 2026, students will receive academic advising to help them prepare for the transition to their “individual pathway to degree completion” in which they will be informed on degree requirements for the mapped Northeastern program, which MMC credits will satisfy Northeastern degree requirements, and what courses are still needed for degree completion. How MMC 3-credit classes will transfer to the NU 4-credit system is not yet clear. 

As per the email from President Naccarato, the merger is awaiting approval from the United States Department of Education. If the USDOE does not approve, according to a June 2025 report from the New York State Education Department, “If the second step of the merger is not realized (i.e., the transaction is not approved by the USDOE), the interim MMC Board and MMC leadership would plan to wind down operations and effectuate an orderly closure of the institution.” However, if the merger is approved by the USDOE, the report highlights that the merger would be completed on June 30th or December 31st, whichever follows closest to the date of approval.

 Over a year into the merging process, students’ questions are slowly being answered, but their number one question – “when will the merger be complete?” – is still unknown. 

Edit: Previously June 1, the USDOE date has been corrected to June 30.