Is Northeastern harder to get into than George Mason?

The biggest practical difference is selectivity level: Northeastern is meaningfully more competitive in admissions than George Mason. Northeastern draws a very large national and international applicant pool, is often treated by students as a reach or high-target school, and pays close attention to academic rigor, grades, and how the overall application fits its priorities. George Mason is respected and can still be selective for some majors, but in overall admissions it is notably more accessible.

So if your question is simply which one is harder to get into, the clear answer is Northeastern. That is true in the broad, everyday sense students use when comparing schools on a list. Applicants who are comfortably competitive for George Mason are not automatically competitive for Northeastern in the same way.

Part of that gap comes from how the schools sit in the market. Northeastern has built a strong national profile, attracts many applicants who are also applying to highly selective private universities, and gets interest partly because of its co-op model and Boston location. George Mason has a different admissions landscape, with a larger public-university mission and a broader range of students it serves.

That does not mean George Mason is easy, or that Northeastern is impossible. But as a simple comparison, Northeastern belongs in a tougher admissions tier than George Mason, and most students should plan for Northeastern as the more difficult admit.