<p>I think everybody would agree that general atmosphere on a college is an important factor when deciding on a place to spend next four years of your life.</p>
<p>So, plz help, firsthand experience.</p>
<p>What is Harvard REALLY like?</p>
<p>This person wrote a book on his first hand experience.</p>
<p><a href="http://slate.msn.com/id/2114657/?GT1=6208&*%5B/url%5D">http://slate.msn.com/id/2114657/?GT1=6208&*</a></p>
<p>i think it is a cup overflowing with knowledge, the key is to find your niche</p>
<p>Hi Ognjen,</p>
<p>I'd be happy to answer questions about what Harvard's like, but could you be a little bit more specific?</p>
<p>Well, I am mainly interested in the atmosphere at Harvard. I guess we all know that Harvard is excellent when it comes to academic resources, but I'd like to know sth more about student life, especially students relations.
I heard that it's highly competitive and that it's more like "every man for himself" rather than helping each other out. And also that it's full of rich, high-class, arrogant students who would look down on you because of their status.</p>
<p>How would one comment on that?</p>
<p>I haven't seen much competition in my experience. In fact, many of the science and math classes I've taken have been characterized by co-operation and group work, and plenty of professors encourage collaboration on problem sets. There are a lot of rich students at Harvard, but they're more characterized by liberal guilt than snobishness (cf the recent tempest over DormAid, a campus cleaning service, which some students are against b/c it might increase the visibility of wealth disparity--the only people I've heard come out against it have been wealthy students).</p>
<p>Thanx Phoenixy.</p>
<p>I am mainly interested in sciences (physics) so your advice is helpful.
But what about outside the classroom, parties, free time, social life?<br>
What is majority of people doing? Studying ? :) Hanging out? </p>
<p>Plz don't get me wrong. I was just implanted with prejudices that people there are cold, if you know what I mean</p>
<p>It's interesting that you mention physics...I happen to live in Leverett, which is sort of the physics house. The current house master is a physics professor, and every Wednesday night is sort of a big physics party where he holds office hours in the dining hall and groups of physics students from all over campus do their problem sets and eat our bagels. </p>
<p>It kind of depends on what you like to do...some people go into Boston (a little difficult to go clubbing late at night because the T stops running at about 2:00 AM), some go to campus parties, some go to bars, some hang out with friends, some study, work, or do extracurriculars (extracurriculars are very big), and some people with no lives answer questions on College Confidential (no offense to the other Harvard students on CC).</p>